- Trump last month ordered the resumption of nuclear weapons tests.
- Says Saudi Ariabia wants to buy a lot of jets and he’s looking into it.
- Trump’s lawyers threatened to sue the BBC for damages of up to 1 billion. USD.
The United States will resume nuclear tests in line with other nations, President Donald Trump said Friday, while also confirming he is weighing a potential deal to supply Saudi Arabia with F-35 fighter jets.
He did not clarify whether the test plans involve detonating a nuclear warhead.
“I don’t want to tell you about it, but we’re going to do nuclear tests just like other countries,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he traveled to Florida over the weekend.
Trump last month ordered the US military to immediately restart the process to test nuclear weapons after 33 years, and made the surprise announcement on Truth Social while aboard his Marine One helicopter flying to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping for a trade negotiation session in Busan, South Korea.
F-35s trade with Saudi Arabia on the way
Trump also said Friday that he is considering agreeing to a deal to supply Saudi Arabia with F-35 stealth fighter jets, which are made by Lockheed Martin.
“They’re going to buy a lot of jets,” Trump told reporters.
“I’m looking at it. They’ve asked me to look at it. They want to buy a lot of ’35s – but they actually want to buy more than that, fighters.”
The potential sale comes as Trump plans to host Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House next week, where they are expected to sign economic and defense deals.
Asked about the talks, Trump told reporters it was “more than a meeting, we honor” Saudi Arabia.
Meanwhile, President Trump is expected to strike a deal with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman allowing Riyadh to acquire F-35 stealth fighter jets. Bloomberg News reported Friday, citing a White House official.
Trump and the crown prince plan to sign economic and defense deals during a visit to the White House scheduled for Tuesday, the report added.
Reuters could not immediately confirm the report.
A Pentagon intelligence report has raised concerns about the potential F-35 deal, warning that China could acquire the aircraft’s technology if the sale goes ahead. New York Times reported Thursday, citing people familiar with the assessment.
Lawsuit against the BBC
President Donald Trump told reporters on Friday that he will take legal action against the British Broadcasting Corporation next week.
The BBC sent a personal apology to President Trump on Thursday, but said there was no legal basis for him to sue the public broadcaster over a documentary his lawyers called defamatory.
The documentary, which aired on the BBC’s “Panorama” news program just before the 2024 US presidential election, spliced together three parts of Trump’s speech on January 6, 2021, when his supporters stormed the Capitol. The editing created the impression that he had called for violence.
“While the BBC sincerely regrets the way in which the video clip was edited, we strongly disagree that there is any basis for defamation,” the broadcaster said in a statement.
Lawyers for the US president threatened on Sunday to sue the BBC for up to $1 billion in damages unless it withdrew the documentary, apologized to the president and compensated him for “financial and reputational damage”.
