The statement by US President Donald Trump regarding the conduct of nuclear weapons tests has caused great unrest in the international community.

It is recalled that the USA has not conducted any nuclear weapons tests since 1992, while the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) was signed in 1996. In the last 30 years, there have been only ten nuclear tests by the world's youngest nuclear powers, namely India (1998), Pakistan (1998) and North Korea (2006, 2009, 2013, 2016 and 2017).

The signing of the Treaty took place after a multitude of data and complaints about the impact of the tests on the environment and humans, which, starting in 1945, took place for many decades.

Trump's change of tack

The US president, however, shortly before yesterday's meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, stirred up the decades-old calm waters, saying that he had no other choice. The reasoning behind this decision is his observation that other powers, such as Russia, have recently tested weapons capable of carrying nuclear warheads.

The Kremlin denies this, but has said Moscow will also conduct nuclear tests if Washington gives the go-ahead. At the same time, the European Union is perhaps the only voice of reason in this area, as it called on everyone to respect the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

The practical problems of testing

According to the Washington Post, the testing site will also need modifications and work. People who recently visited the facility describe the space and the equipment used to excavate it as rusty.

At the same time, gaps are also appearing in the labor sector: Many employees of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) were either laid off as part of the purge for reasons of reducing government costs by Elon Musk's DOGE or were placed on leave amid the ongoing US government shutdown.

"These are the people who make the weapons, who enrich the material, who test the existing stockpiles," said Nevada Democratic Representative Dina Titus.

The time required

At the same time, officials appear divided on the issue of how long it will take to make the tests feasible, with some telling the Washington Post that they could be carried out in just six months, while others emphasize that it could take years.

Former employees of the Nevada Test Site also said that resuming testing would be costly and complicated. According to them, the experience with in situ testing is outdated, as modern nuclear tests were based mainly on computer models and simulations, which were stopped before they could cause physical explosions.

The personnel issue is very important. The test managers are not bureaucrats, explains Paul Dickman, a federal nuclear energy official who participated in several weapons tests in Nevada. They were not PowerPoint people. These people had a lot of experience under their belts.

The concerns

In any case, regardless of when and whether the US will finally resume nuclear testing, Trump's statements are causing great concern in the international community. The largely forgotten nuclear danger is coming back to the fore, especially at a time when armed conflicts, even on the territory of the Old Continent, continue, with no realistic prospect of their immediate cessation.

This creates a particularly dangerous situation, as if these weapons were used in the field, the devastation they could cause is terrifying, while the environmental impact of their use is nightmarish.