Pakistan Refutes Trump's Nuclear Testing Claims: "We Will Not Be First to Resume Tests"

Pakistan is not a signatory to the international Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, yet maintains a clear position on nuclear testing.

A high-ranking Pakistani official has publicly declared that Islamabad "will not be the first to resume nuclear tests," directly addressing former US President Donald Trump's recent allegations that Pakistan is conducting covert nuclear weapons tests.

In a statement to CBS News, the Pakistani representative emphasized, "Pakistan was not the first to carry out nuclear tests and will not be the first to resume nuclear tests."

Trump claimed during a Sunday interview that several nations, including Russia, China, North Korea, and Pakistan, have been performing underground nuclear tests without public knowledge, suggesting the United States should follow their example.

"Russia's testing, and China's testing, but they don't talk about it," Trump stated during his appearance on CBS's "60 Minutes" program.

"I don't want to be the only country that doesn't test," he continued, specifically mentioning North Korea and Pakistan among countries allegedly conducting secret tests.

When questioned further on these assertions, Trump elaborated, "They don't go and tell you about it... As powerful as they are, this is a big world. You don't necessarily know where they're testing. They test way underground, where people don't know exactly what's happening with the test. You feel a little bit of a vibration."

The United States has been a signatory to the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) since 1996, which prohibits all atomic test explosions for any purpose, whether military or civilian. America's last nuclear detonation occurred in 1992.

Apart from North Korea, no nation is known to have conducted nuclear tests in decades. Russia's last known test was in 1990, while China's most recent test took place in 1996.

Pakistan's final documented nuclear explosive test occurred in 1998. Since then, despite not being a CTBT signatory, Islamabad has consistently maintained adherence to a "unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing."