Seventy-six years ago today, on September 23, 1949 (August 2, 1949), the Soviet Union developed the atomic bomb. On September 23, 1949, President Truman's cabinet received shocking news at a weekend meeting when Truman announced: "We have evidence that the Soviet Union has exploded an atomic bomb in the last few weeks." Secretary of State Dean Acheson said the intelligence showed that the Soviet Union had developed an atomic bomb. Become the second country in the world to possess nuclear weapons. The U.S. government acted quickly to prevent a crisis from breaking out. "The more calm the American people are about this, the better," said General Omar Bradley, chairperson of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. " We expected this four years ago, so it won't change our basic defense plans. "Truman was determined to keep the American atomic bomb in the hands of the people, and he renewed his call for international control of atomic energy. A U.S. Air Force spokesperson in London said the B-29 bombers deployed in Britain were" likely "to be replaced by B-50 aircraft, which can carry atomic bombs.