US President Donald Trump announced that he has ordered the immediate start of nuclear weapons tests, "on an equal footing" with other countries that are said to have such programs.
"I have ordered the Department of War to begin testing our nuclear weapons on an equal footing. This process will begin immediately", Trump wrote on his social media account Truth Social.
He said that the US has the largest nuclear arsenal, but China could catch up with them within five years.
Trump said that he justified his decision by citing the alleged existence of "testing programs" in other countries.