Putin orders planning for possible nuclear test days after Trump refuses to rule out underground detonation

Terming US President Donald Trump’s statement that Washington could resume nuclear testing as “a serious issue,” Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday directed top officials to draft proposals for a possible nuclear weapons test.

However, Putin added that Russia has no plans to violate existing international agreements on nuclear testing.

“Russia has always strictly adhered to its obligations under the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, and we have no plans to deviate from these commitments,” reported Bloomberg, quoting Putin as saying in a televised meeting of his Security Council.

Moscow would “take appropriate retaliatory measures” if the US or another power conducted such a test, he said.

Defence Minister Andrei Belousov said Russia's Arctic testing site at Novaya Zemlya could host such tests at short notice.

In October, Russia tested a nuclear-powered Burevestnik cruise missile, which is designed to carry a nuclear warhead. It also held nuclear launch drills and tested a nuclear-powered Poseidon super-torpedo.

What Putin told official?

“I am instructing the Foreign Ministry, the Defence Ministry... the special services and relevant civilian agencies to do everything possible to collect additional information on the issue, analyse it at the Security Council and make agreed proposals on the possible start of work on the preparation of nuclear weapons tests,” Reuters reported.

Nuclear tests

— North Korea - most recently in 2017 - carried out explosive tests of nuclear weapons in the 21st century.

— The United States last tested in 1992,

— China and France in 1996 and the Soviet Union in 1990.

Trump on nuclear tests

Last week, without clarifying if he was referring to nuclear-explosive testing, Donald Trump said that because of other countries' testing programs, he has instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis. “That process will begin immediately.”

“You'll find out very soon, but we're going to do some testing,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he flew to Palm Beach, Florida, when asked about underground nuclear tests.

"Other countries do it. If they're (going) to do it, we're going to do it, OK?"

'Kim Jong Un could conduct a nuclear test'

Citing South Korea's Defense Intelligence Agency, Yonhap News Agency reported that North Korea's Kim Jong Un could conduct a nuclear test at the country's Punggye-ri nuclear test facility in a short time if he decided to, said a Reuters report.