Moscow to deploy ‘tactical’ nuclear weapons in Belarus

In his arm wrestling with the West, Vladimir Putin brings out the nuclear threat. The Russian president said on Saturday that Moscow was going to deploy “tactical” nuclear weapons on the territory of his ally, Belarus, a country located at the gates of the European Union.

Russian officials have repeatedly issued thinly veiled threats to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine if the conflict escalates significantly. Led since 1994 by Alexander Lukashenko, Belarus borders Ukraine, Poland and Lithuania.

“Ten planes are ready to use this type of weapon”

“There is nothing unusual here: the United States has been doing this for decades. They have long been deploying their tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of their allies,” the Kremlin master said in an interview broadcast on Russian television. “We agreed to do the same,” he added, saying he had the Minsk agreement. Belarus is not directly involved in the conflict in Ukraine, but Moscow used its territory to lead its offensive on kyiv last year or to carry out strikes, according to Ukrainian authorities.

“We have already helped our Belarusian colleagues and equipped their planes (…) without violating our international commitments on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. Ten planes are ready to use this type of weapon,” Vladimir Putin continued, according to which Moscow has also transferred Iskander missiles. “From April 3, we begin to train the crews. And on July 1, we will complete the construction of a special warehouse for tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus,” he added.

According to Vladimir Putin, this decision was motivated by London’s desire to send depleted uranium munitions to Ukraine, as recently mentioned by a British official. The Russian president threatened to also use this type of shell, used to pierce armor, if kyiv were to receive it.

“Russia, of course, has something to answer for. We have, without exaggeration, hundreds of thousands of such shells. We are not using them at the moment,” he said. Vladimir Putin also called this type of weapon shell among “the most dangerous” and which “generates what is called radiation dust”.

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