Russian President Vladimir Putin had announced his intention two months ago to deploy nuclear weapons in Belarus – in what would be the first deployment of this type of weapon outside its borders since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko confirmed that “the transfer of nuclear munitions has already begun”, adding that it is even “possible” that these weapons are already in the country.
The statements by Lukashenko, who was in Moscow for the meeting of the Supreme Economic Council of Eurasia with Putin and the leaders of Armenia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, were made after the defense ministers of both countries signed an agreement to allow the deployment of tactical formalize weapons. nuclear weapons. “The West is essentially waging an undeclared war against our countries” and “prolonging and escalating the armed conflict in Ukraine,” Russian minister Sergei Shoigu said after a meeting with his counterpart, Viktor Khrenin, in Minsk.
Shoigu claimed that the Russian decision is in response to “the serious escalation of threats and activities of NATO’s joint nuclear missions”, reiterating that the agreement covers tactical nuclear weapons and meets “all international legal obligations”. He also recalled that “Russia” will not hand over the weapons to Belarus, as “the control and decision to use them remains with the Russian side”. For Khrenin, “the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons is an effective response to the aggressive policies of enemy countries.”
Tactical nuclear weapons are designed to secure gains on the battlefield and are usually smaller than strategic nuclear weapons – designed to be used against strategic locations far from the frontline or to destroy entire cities. The number of tactical nuclear weapons in Russian hands is uncertain, the US estimates it at about 2,000. This is reported by the AP news agency. The US already has about 200, half of them in European bases in Germany, Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey.
It is not known how many of these weapons Russia can send to Belarus, which borders three NATO countries: Poland, Lithuania and Latvia. However, Shoigu said that Moscow has already supplied the Belarusian armed forces with Iskander-M missiles, which can carry both conventional and nuclear warheads, and Su-25 fighter jets that have been converted to be used with these weapons.
Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, who lives in exile, criticized this development, saying it will “hold Belarusians hostage to Russian imperial ambitions”. He further claimed that this “will not only endanger the lives of Belarusians, but also create a new threat against Ukraine and all of Europe”.
Meanwhile, at the front in Ukraine, the Wagner Group mercenaries, who claim to have completely taken Bakhmut over the weekend, are retreating and handing over their positions to the Russian army. However, the Chief of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, assured that “militarily, this war will not be won by Russia. It will not.” But he also warned Kiev that the goal of regaining lost ground is “unlikely” in the near term.
Source: DN
