the administration of the trump discussed the possibility of holding the United States first from 1992 nuclear test explosion. Such a step would have far-reaching consequences for US relations with other nuclear powers, and put an end to the current few decades, the moratorium on such tests.
according to The Washington Post, this issue was raised on 15 may at a meeting of senior officials, representing the highest national security forces after the U.S. officials made statements that Russia and China reportedly conducted a nuclear test of low power. As noted by the American edition, this allegation has not been confirmed by publicly available evidence, and these countries are denied such information.
a Senior administration official who, like others, spoke to The Washington Post on condition of anonymity, said that the demonstration Moscow and Beijing the United States “to conduct accelerated testing” may be useful from the point of view of the talks as Washington seeks to enter into a three-way deal, which aims to regulate the arsenals of major nuclear powers.
the Meeting in question, did not end with the adoption of any agreement on the conduct of the tests, but a senior source from the administration claims that this proposal caused a “very long conversation”. However, another source knowledgeable about the meeting, said that ultimately the decision was made to take other measures in response to coming from Russia and China threats, avoiding the resumption of nuclear testing.
during the meeting, tells The Washington Post, there are serious disagreements about this idea, in particular by National administration on nuclear security, according to two people familiar with the discussions.
the United States has not conducted a nuclear test since September 1992, and defenders of the nuclear non-proliferation warned that it can have destabilizing consequences.
“It would be an invitation for other countries possessing nuclear weapons to follow suit, the Executive Director of the Association for arms control Daryl Kimball. – Would be the starting point for an unprecedented nuclear arms race. Would also be disrupted talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong-UN, who might no longer feels obliged to abide by its moratorium on nuclear testing “.
the United States remains the only country to use nuclear weapons, but since 1945 at least eight countries have jointly conducted approximately 2,000 nuclear tests, of which more than 1000 were conducted by the United States.
Alarm p�� about the risk posed to the ecological situation on the Earth from the trials, prompted more than 184 countries to sign the Treaty on comprehensive ban of nuclear tests (CTBT), an agreement which will enter into force only after ratification by eight key States, including the United States.
But despite the fact that the former head of the White House Barack Obama have supported ratification of the Treaty in 2009, he failed to achieve his goal. Administration trump said in his review of nuclear policy in 2018 that it will not pursue ratification of the CTBT.
nevertheless, The main nuclear powers keep your main the test ban. But the United States in recent months have accused Russia and China in violation of the standard of “zero power” through tests with extremely low power or underground tests. Both Moscow and Beijing denied the allegations.
discussion of the possibility of new nuclear test explosion occurred on the background of the administration’s statements trump’s readiness to withdraw from the Treaty on open skies, designed to reduce the chances of random occurrence of war by encouraging mutual reconnaissance flights for the participants of the agreement of 34 countries.
Announced the release marks another example of the destruction of the global system of arms control, over which Washington and Moscow began to work hard even during the cold war. The administration of the tramp withdrew from the Agreement with Russia on the medium-range missiles, citing violations by Moscow. In Washington refused the nuclear deal in 2015 with Iran, saying that Tehran should not be the spirit of the agreements.
the backbone of the system of arms control between the United States and Russia can become the new start Treaty limiting strategic nuclear weapons. The administration of the tramp insists on concluding a new agreement, which included China and Russia, but has so far rejected calls for negotiations.
Resumed nuclear testing can put pressure on China to adhere to a trilateral agreement with the United States and Russia, according to some figures of the us administration. But supporters of non-proliferation think such a move is risky: “If this administration thinks a nuclear test explosion and nuclear weapons possession will force the negotiating partners to go for unilateral concessions, it is a dangerous trick.”
