Donald Trump says he'd be willing to use a nuclear weapon against an enemy as "an absolute last step," calling nuclear capability "the single biggest problem" facing the world.
In an interview with the New York Times on his foreign policy views posted Saturday, the GOP presidential front-runner also said he'd stop buying oil from Saudi Arabia if it refused to put troops on the ground to fight ISIS; would yank U.S. security forces from Japan and South Korea if they didn't contribute more money for the protection; wouldn't rule out spying on American allies; and doesn't consider himself an isolationist but as someone who puts "America first."
The Times said it spoke with Trump in two telephone calls.
Asked if he'd be willing to have the United States be the first to use nuclear weapons in a confrontation with an enemy, Trump replied: "An absolute last step."
"I personally think it’s the biggest problem the world has, nuclear capability," he said. "I think it’s the single biggest problem. When people talk global warming, I say the global warming that we have to be careful of is the nuclear global warming. "
He also said he'd be open to allowing Japan and South Korea to build their own nuclear arsenals rather than depend on the America for protection against a nuclear-armed North Korea and China.
"It's a position that at some point is something that we have to talk about, and if the United States keeps on its path, its current path of weakness, they’re going to want to have that anyway with or without me discussing it," he said.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.