‘We’ll not be the first to resume nuclear tests’: Pakistan rebuts Trump as China calls allegations ‘baseless’

Pakistan denies Trump’s nuclear test accusation, China says its policy remains ‘purely defensive’

A senior Pakistani official told CBS News that the country “will not be the first to resume nuclear tests,” responding to US President Donald Trump’s claim in a 60 Minutes interview that Pakistan, along with Russia and China, had conducted nuclear weapons tests.

“Pakistan was not the first to carry out nuclear tests and will not be the first to resume nuclear tests," the official reiterated, dismissing Trump’s remarks.

Trump, in his interview with CBS correspondent Norah O’Donnell, defended his recent decision to lift the 33-year US moratorium on nuclear weapons testing, arguing that several nations were already conducting secret tests. “Russia’s testing, and China’s testing, but they don’t talk about it,” Trump said. “We’re going to test, because they test and others test. And certainly North Korea’s been testing. Pakistan’s been testing.”

He continued, “Russia's testing and China's testing them too, but they don't talk about it. We're an open society. We're different. We talk about it... They don’t have reporters that are going to be writing about it.” Trump also claimed that these countries conduct underground tests “where people don’t know exactly what’s happening,” adding, “You feel a little bit of a vibration. They test and we don’t test. We have to test.”

While Trump listed multiple nuclear-armed nations, he notably omitted India, which maintains a transparent non-proliferation policy.

The interview aired shortly after Trump’s nominee to lead the US Strategic Command (STRATCOM) told lawmakers that neither China nor Russia was conducting nuclear explosive tests.

On Monday, CIA Director John Ratcliffe posted on X that Trump “is right,” sharing images referencing a 2019 Defense Intelligence Agency assessment suggesting Russia and China had conducted low-yield nuclear tests. The United States, China, and Russia are all signatories to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1996, though none have ratified it.

Meanwhile, China firmly denied Trump’s allegations, calling them “baseless.”

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Beijing “has always adhered to the path of peaceful development” and follows a strict “no first use” policy on nuclear weapons. She emphasized that China’s nuclear strategy is “purely defensive” and that the country remains committed to maintaining a moratorium on all nuclear testing.

“China abides by its international commitments and continues to play an active role in upholding global peace and stability,” Mao said. “China has consistently maintained a responsible attitude on nuclear issues,” she added, rejecting any suggestion that Beijing had violated international norms.