WASHINGTON, May 27. /TASS/. The United States will be ready to hold a nuclear test within a few months if ordered so by the country’s president, the Defense News portal said citing Drew Walter, who is performing the duties of deputy assistant secretary of defense for nuclear matters.
The official said that, in his opinion, a nuclear test "would happen relatively rapidly," possibly "within months" if ordered by the president for technical or geopolitical reasons.
On May 22, Washington Post reported the United States authorities were discussing whether to conduct their first nuclear test explosion since 1992. According to the paper, the matter came up at a meeting of senior officials representing the top national security agencies on May 15. However, no agreement on resumption of nuclear tests was achieved during those talks. One of the officials was quoted as saying by the paper that the discussions were still ongoing.