US plans to resume nuclear testing are “regressive and irresponsible”, Iran said late on Thursday after a surprise directive by US President Donald Trump.
“A nuclear-armed bully is resuming testing of atomic weapons. The same bully has been demonising Iran’s peaceful nuclear programme,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on social media.
Mr Trump on Thursday said the US would begin testing nuclear weapons on "an equal basis" as China and Russia. He made the announcement shortly before meeting Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation summit.
"The [US] announcement of a resumption of nuclear tests is a regressive and irresponsible move and a serious threat to international peace and security," Mr Araghchi added.
US Vice President JD Vance said America's nuclear arsenal needs to be tested to ensure it actually "functions properly," but did not elaborate on what type of tests Mr Trump had ordered. The President's statement "speaks for itself," Mr Vance told reporters at the White House.
"It's an important part of American national security to make sure that this nuclear arsenal we have actually functions properly, and that's part of a testing regime," he said.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said that "nuclear testing can never be permitted under any circumstances".
The US has been a signatory since 1996 to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, which bans all atomic test explosions, whether for military or civilian purposes.
Mr Trump told reporters on board Air Force One that it had been "many years" since the US had conducted nuclear tests, but it was "appropriate" to start again.
With the exception of North Korea, no country has conducted an explosive nuclear weapons test in more than a quarter century. Russia last tested a bomb in 1990, the US in 1992 and China in 1996.
Iran has been subjected to criticism and sanctions over its nuclear aspirations. The nuclear plants at Natanz, Isfahan and Fordow were hit by US strikes in June during the two-week Israel-Iran air war.
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Family reunited
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was born and raised in Tehran and studied English literature before working as a translator in the relief effort for the Japanese International Co-operation Agency in 2003.
She moved to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies before moving to the World Health Organisation as a communications officer.
She came to the UK in 2007 after securing a scholarship at London Metropolitan University to study a master's in communication management and met her future husband through mutual friends a month later.
The couple were married in August 2009 in Winchester and their daughter was born in June 2014.
She was held in her native country a year later.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
South Africa v India schedule
Tests: 1st Test Jan 5-9, Cape Town; 2nd Test Jan 13-17, Centurion; 3rd Test Jan 24-28, Johannesburg
ODIs: 1st ODI Feb 1, Durban; 2nd ODI Feb 4, Centurion; 3rd ODI Feb 7, Cape Town; 4th ODI Feb 10, Johannesburg; 5th ODI Feb 13, Port Elizabeth; 6th ODI Feb 16, Centurion
T20Is: 1st T20I Feb 18, Johannesburg; 2nd T20I Feb 21, Centurion; 3rd T20I Feb 24, Cape Town
Liverpool's all-time goalscorers
Ian Rush 346
Roger Hunt 285
Mohamed Salah 250
Gordon Hodgson 241
Billy Liddell 228
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
KEY DEVELOPMENTS IN MARITIME DISPUTE
2000: Israel withdraws from Lebanon after nearly 30 years without an officially demarcated border. The UN establishes the Blue Line to act as the frontier.
2007: Lebanon and Cyprus define their respective exclusive economic zones to facilitate oil and gas exploration. Israel uses this to define its EEZ with Cyprus
2011: Lebanon disputes Israeli-proposed line and submits documents to UN showing different EEZ. Cyprus offers to mediate without much progress.
2018: Lebanon signs first offshore oil and gas licencing deal with consortium of France’s Total, Italy’s Eni and Russia’s Novatek.
2018-2019: US seeks to mediate between Israel and Lebanon to prevent clashes over oil and gas resources.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
More coverage from the Future Forum
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
