China has forcefully denied claims by Donald Trump that it is conducting secret nuclear tests, accusations Trump used to justify his own order for the U.S. to “start testing.” The U.S. directive, however, remains shrouded in ambiguity, causing widespread confusion.
A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson stated that Beijing is a “responsible nuclear-weapons state” and has “abided by its commitment to suspend nuclear testing.” This was a direct refutation of Trump’s claims.
Trump had alleged in a CBS interview that both Russia and China were conducting tests “way underground.” He used this claim as the basis for his social media directive to the “Department of War” to “start testing.”
It is this directive that has baffled observers. No one is clear if Trump is calling for computational modeling or for the first U.S. physical nuclear test since 1992, which would shatter a long-standing international norm.
The entire affair has escalated global tensions, already high after Russia’s recent test of a nuclear-powered cruise missile. Trump has also contributed by claiming the U.S. possesses the world’s largest nuclear arsenal.