Putin Orders Nuclear Test Prep After Trump Announces US Plans

Published 2 hours ago

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Above: Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow on Nov. 4, 2025. Image copyright: Maxim Shipenkov/POOL/AFP/Getty Images

The Spin

Pro-Russia narrative

Russia's measured response to Trump's nuclear testing directive shows responsible leadership amid American escalation. Putin explicitly reaffirmed Russia's commitment to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty while only preparing defensive countermeasures to match potential U.S. aggression. Moscow's approach demonstrates strategic restraint — ordering analysis and proposals rather than immediate testing preparations, unlike America's reckless rush to resume nuclear weapons testing after 33 years.

Anadolu Ajansı President of Russia TASS

Pro-Trump narrative

President Trump has raised an important concern: the United States is the only major power not conducting nuclear weapons tests. He has rightly stressed the need to resume atomic testing to keep pace with Russia and China, who deny the truth about their activities. CIA Director John Ratcliffe supports this stance, while Energy Secretary Chris Wright notes that any military tests will focus on non-critical explosions, for a responsible approach to national security.

Trump White House New York Post

Opposition narrative

Trump's nuclear testing announcement threatens to unleash devastating global consequences that will harm innocent populations for generations. Nuclear testing has already caused over 100,000 excess cancer deaths worldwide and created uninhabitable radioactive wastelands in places like the Marshall Islands. Resuming explosive nuclear testing would inflict new suffering on vulnerable communities while triggering a dangerous arms race that undermines decades of nonproliferation progress.

Axios CNN