Nuclear testing, Back from the Brink and NoFirstUse

Posted: 27th November 2025

Also: House of Dynamite & NFU,
NFU in the Italian & Australian parliaments,
and Call for nominations for the PACEY Award

On October 30, President Trump ordered the U.S. military to immediately restart the process for testing nuclear weapons, alleging that Russia and China are already undertaking secret underground tests. Subsequent statements added confusion as to whether the U.S. would resume nuclear detonations, or step up its other methods of testing nuclear weapons (such as sub-critical tests). Regardless, the provocative announcement escalates an already dangerous nuclear arms race that is consuming over $100 billion per year and increasing the risks of nuclear war.

U.S. Senator Ed Markey, Co-President of Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament, responded by announcing the introduction of No Nuclear Testing Act, which would use Congress’s power of the purse to deny the Trump administration from restarting nuclear testing.

Back from the Brink resolutions:
Earlier this year, on the anniversary of the first ever nuclear test (July 16), Senator Markey introduced Senate Resolution 323 (nicknamed the Back from the Brink Resolution) urging the United States to lead a global effort to halt and reverse the nuclear arms race. See On the 80th anniversary of the Trinity test, Senator Markey introduces legislation to halt and reverse the nuclear arms race.

Resolution 323, and a companion resolution in the House (House Res 317) introduced by Rep James McGovern, are being promoted by Back from the Brink, a coalition of hundreds of U.S. organizations, academics, municipalities and civil society leaders. The principal calls in the Back from the Brink resolutions are for the U.S. to:

Renounce the option of using nuclear weapons first (emphasis added);
End the sole, unchecked authority of any president to launch a nuclear attack;
Take U.S. nuclear weapons off hair-trigger alert; and
Cancel the plan to replace its entire arsenal with enhanced weapons.

Currently Senate Resolution 323 has 8 cosponsors while House Resolution 317 has 35 cosposnors (see list of cosponsors).

“Nuclear weapons do not make us safer—they put the entire planet at risk. We are closer to nuclear catastrophe today than at any point since the Cold War. We need bold action to stop a new arms race before it’s too late. This resolution is a call for courage, diplomacy, and common sense.”
Congressman McGovern introducing House Resolution 317 which, amongst other things, calls on the United States government to adopt a policy of no-first-use.

Stepping Back from the Brink report released

On November 25, the Nuclear Education Trust (NET) released a new report Stepping Back from the Brink: The Myths of Tactical Nuclear Weapons and Limited Nuclear War.

The report, written by Dr Tim Street, Secretary of British Pugwash, was released at a special event which included legislators from the UK House of Lords and House of Commons as well as policy analysts, academics/researchers and nuclear disarmament campaigners.

Stepping Back from the Brink examines in detail the policies and strategic behaviour of the nuclear armed States – with a particular focus on Russia, the United States, China and the UK – and discusses policy options and political considerations for stepping back from the brink of nuclear war and reviving nuclear arms control and disarmament.

Amongst the issues discussed are the potential use of tactical nuclear weapons in conventional war fighting and whether, following the illegal invasion of Ukraine by Russia, the nuclear taboo is eroding. In this context it also reviews the recent decision by the UK Government to purchase 12 F-35As with the capacity to deliver US B61 “tactical” nuclear weapons.

The report includes 14 policy recommendations for reducing nuclear risks, enhancing regional and global peace and security, and reviving nuclear arms control and disarmament. Amongst these are the recommendation that nuclear armed States adopt no-first-use policies.

Stepping Back from the Brink recommendation on No-First-Use

A commitment by nuclear armed states to not be the first to use nuclear weapons, regardless of the circumstances, could significantly reduce the risk of escalation from conventional conflicts.

All nuclear armed states could be encouraged to join China (and India) in adopting policies pledging not to use nuclear weapons first. This could be done unilaterally or through joint declarations. The P5 process could also be used to discuss a No First Use treaty. The Report suggests that “At present, nuclear armed states do not sufficiently trust each other to allow no first use declarations to be credible,” but argues that “this need not stop discussion on what would be required to build workable and credible no first use declarations.”

House of Dynamite and No-First-Use

On October 24, Netflix released The House of Dynamite, a political thriller, the storyline of which involves a crisis that unfolds over the course of 18 minutes real-time (in a movie nearly 2 hours long) after an unattributed nuclear missile is launched at the United States. The movie builds to a climactic ending that leaves the ultimate response unresolved, to make audiences think about the complexities of nuclear threats.

“Eighteen minutes to decide the fate of the world and yet limited information with which to do so,” says director Kathryn Bigelow. “We see into the halls of power, where highly competent individuals are confronted with confusion, chaos, and helplessness.”

The movie has been criticized by the U.S. Department of Defence which claims that the U.S. anti-ballistic missile interceptors would prevent any such missile attack, as they have 100% success rate.

However, the movie was defended by arms control organizations and some legislators including Senator Markey, who argues that “Unfortunately, this rosy assessment would appear to have everything to do with misleading the public and nothing to do with providing accurate information. MDA is apparently following the lead of President Trump who also exaggerates the success of missile defenses, promising that his Golden Dome system will be nearly perfect, “forever ending the missile threat to the American homeland.” (See Senator Markey’s letter to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth).

Senator Markey argues that it is foolish to rely on anti-ballistic missile defence for protection against nuclear attack, and that it would be much wiser for the U.S. to reduce nuclear risks by “working with Russia and China to reduce nuclear arsenals; renouncing the first use of nuclear weapons; ending the production of new nuclear weapons; and maintaining the global moratorium on nuclear testing” (See Senator Markey introduces legislation urging the United States to lead the world to halt and reverse the nuclear arms race)

Senator Ed Markey discusses the risks of today’s nuclear arms race with Kathryn Bigelow, Director of The House of Dynamite, November 14, 2025.
Click on the image above to watch the interview.

No-First-Use in the Italian and Australian parliaments

Italian Parliament:
Last week the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Italian parliament discussed and then rejected a resolution on nuclear disarmament proposed by Laura Boldrini MP, that proposed a no-first-use policy for Italy, along with support for other nuclear disarmament measures including the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

The resolution was supported by Rete Italiana Pace e Disarmo (Italian Peace and Disarmament Network) and “Italia Ripensaci” (Italy, Think Again), a coalition of civil society organizations as part of commemorations for the 80th anniversary of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. See La Camera respinge risoluzione sul disarmo nucleare (also in English)

Australian Parliament:
Australian Senator David Shoebridge has indicated plans to submit questions to the government on nuclear risk reduction and disarmament during the Senate Estimates Session next week (December 1-4, 2025). The draft questions, which include one on the government’s attitude to nuclear risk reduction measures such as no-first-use.

The questions arise from a panel in the parliament on November 4, hosted by Senator Shoebridge, and organized in conjunction with People for Nuclear Disarmament, Parliamentarians for Nuclear Nonproliferation and Disarmament and the Human Survival Project. Another outcome of the panel was a letter sent by the three organizations on November 16 to the Australian Prime Minister, Foreign Minister and Defence Minister Foreign Minister Penny Wong entitled Nuclear testing, 89 Seconds to Midnight: Time for the Albanese Government to Act on Nuclear Risks, which also called on Australia to support no-first-use.

Australian Senator Shoebridge, who on November 4 hosted a panel in the Australian parliament on the risks of nuclear war, and plans to follow-up with parliamentary questions to the government next week, including on whether the government could support no-first-use as an important nuclear risk-reduction and disarmament measure.

Call for nominations for the PACEY Award

Nominations are now open for the 2026 Peace, nuclear Abolition and Climate Engaged Youth (PACEY) Award.

Do you know of a youth project that addresses peace, nuclear risk reduction and disarmament, and/or climate issues and that could be boosted by a prestigious award with €5000 in prize money? This includes any youth project that is advancing no-first-use policies as nuclear risk-reduction and disarmament measures. If so, we encourage you to nominate it for the 2026 PACEY Award.

Nominations are easy. And if you are young and involved in such a project, you can nominate it yourself. The deadline is December 31, 2025. The PACEY Award Ceremony with finalists and winners will be held on January 23, 2026 in conjunction with the 2026 Basel Peace Forum.

The Educational Youth Initiative on Nuclear Testing and Climate Change from Maohi Nui (French Polynesia) was one of the three PACEY Award winners in 2024. Nominations of youth projects on nuclear risk reduction and disarmament, including those advancing no-first-use policies, are encouraged for the 2026 PACEY Award.