“The Secretary-General has repeatedly stated that current nuclear risks are alarmingly high and that all actions that could lead to miscalculations or escalation with catastrophic consequences must be avoided,” said Guterres’ deputy spokesperson at a press conference when asked about the recent announcement made by U.S. President Donald Trump, who ordered the resumption of nuclear weapons testing by the United States.
“As the Secretary-General said, we must never forget the disastrous legacy of over 2,000 nuclear weapons tests conducted in the last 80 years, and that nuclear tests can never be permitted under any circumstances,” concluded Farhan Haq.
Donald Trump ordered the Department of Defense to “begin testing” the United States’ nuclear weapons, ahead of a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, which took place today in South Korea.
The announcement from Washington, which directly references Russia and China, comes after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a test with a nuclear-capable underwater drone.
“Due to the testing programs conducted by other countries, I have asked the War Department to start testing our nuclear weapons on an equal footing. This process will begin immediately,” declared the U.S. President on his social media platform, Truth Social.
In September, Trump renamed the Department of Defense (Pentagon) to the Department of War, although it is currently a secondary designation. “The United States has more nuclear weapons than any other country,” wrote the Republican leader.
“Given the tremendous destructive power, I hate to do this, but I have no alternative! Russia is in second place and China is a distant third, but will be on the same level in five years,” Trump added. The United States has not conducted nuclear weapons tests since 1992.
