From my research, I can confirm that President Trump announced he had the intention of directing the U.S. Military to resume nuclear weapons testing on Thursday, Oct. 30, 2025. Many credible outlets agree that this is likely a reactionary response to Russia's announcement of successful new weapons testing, one of which being an nuclear-powered underwater drone and underground torpedo named Poseidon.
The primary source for this claim is from President Trump himself, although the official White House and other governmental agencies who would be in charge of carrying out these plans have declined to comment on the situation. Other than reputable secondary sources, the primary sources in this claim have refused to comment further, although members of the White House staff, including Vice President JD Vance, have expressed support for the idea of nuclear weapons testing resuming.
I have found multiple credible secondary sources. The first is "Trump's Call to Resume Nuclear Testing After Decades Revives a Cold War Debate," by David Sanger and William Broad, published in the New York times. This article summarizes this claim and more, including historical data about nuclear weapons testing and interviews with various members of President Trump's staff, who have declined to comment officially on what this means for the future of nuclear weapons testing. As well, the White House has not released an official statement about President Trump's announcement, or any future nuclear plans in development.
Link:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/us/politics/trump-nuclear-testing-cold-war.html
My second source is from AP News, "Trump declines to clarify if the US will conduct tests of its nuclear weapons," by Michelle Price and Manuel Ceneta. This source talks about the days after President Trump's initial comment to reporters, and the lack of clarification from Trump and his staff on whether or not this plan is a simply musing or a declarative part of a plan. As well, this article talks about the history of nuclear weapons testing and the lack of response from governmental departments such as the Pentagon and the Energy Department, which oversees the US's stock of nuclear weapons.
Link:
https://apnews.com/article/trump-nuclear-weapons-testing-russia-china-d4260d27e9b656307ad1c6eecfe2df04
4. What potential biases or interests might each of your sources have?
My sources are secondary, so there is always the potentiality that we are missing out on important context or additional information. However, until the primary sources involved respond to questions, reputable sources are the best solution possible to finding this information.
As for biases, both of these sources are very reliable and have many methods to fact-check their claims. As well, they are both very transparent and open about their reporting, and although there is the potentially for biases, they have both been lauded for decades as being the most reputable secondary sources available to the public.
Therefore, this claim seems fairly accurate. Although President Trump has expressed an intention and interest in resuming nuclear weapons testing, it's a waiting game to see if these are just wishes until the federal government formally announces the continuation of testing.
