By SCM Staff Writer
WASHINGTON is preparing to fire up its nuclear testing sites for the first time in decades to ensure the West isn’t left behind by Russia and China.
In a move set to send shockwaves through global capitals, State Department official Christopher Yeaw confirmed the US is ready to resume testing on an “equal footing” with its biggest rivals.
The dramatic shift marks the end of a long-standing “gentleman’s agreement” between the world’s superpowers.
Speaking via the TASS news agency, Yeaw signaled that the US will no longer sit on the sidelines while Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping modernize their own deadly arsenals.
However, in a nod to environmental concerns, Yeaw insisted the US would still abstain from “megaton-class explosions in the atmosphere”—the kind of massive blasts that defined the terrifying height of the Cold War.
Instead, any new tests are expected to be underground, focusing on the reliability and “punch” of the latest high-tech warheads.
The announcement comes as tensions reach boiling point in Eastern Europe and the South China Sea, with experts fearing a new “Atomic Age” is officially upon us.
To help readers understand the gravity of this shift, here is the context behind the headlines:
The Long Pause: The US has not conducted a “supercritical” nuclear test (one involving a full-scale explosion) since 1992.
For the last 30+ years, scientists have relied on computer simulations and “sub-critical” experiments to ensure the stockpile works.
The Russian Factor: Russia recently revoked its ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT).
Satellite imagery has shown increased activity at Russia’s “Novaya Zemlya” testing site in the Arctic.
The Chinese Build-up: China is currently undergoing the fastest expansion of its nuclear kit in history, with reports of new silos and activity at its Lop Nur testing base.
What “Equal Footing” Means: This is diplomatic code for: “If they do it, we do it.” The US is signaling that it will no longer honor a unilateral moratorium if its rivals are secretly—or or openly—advancing their own tech.
Underground: Atmospheric tests (above ground) were banned by most nations in 1963 because they spread radioactive fallout globally.
By ruling out “megaton-class” atmospheric blasts, the US is attempting to reassure the public that we aren’t heading back to the “duck and cover” days of the 1950s.
