Russia signs documents to finalize deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus

Europe, News May 27, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu met with his Belarusian counterpart Victor Khrenin in Minsk on May 25, 2023, to sign documents in order to finalize Russia’s deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus.

“In the context of an extremely sharp escalation of threats on the western borders of Russia and Belarus, a decision was made to take countermeasures in the military-nuclear sphere,” Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said during the document signing ceremony. This is the first time that the Kremlin is finalizing plans to deploy its nuclear weapons outside Russian territory since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union.

Shoigu announced that Iskander-M missiles, which can carry conventional or nuclear warheads, had been handed to the Belarusian armed forces, and some Su-25 aircraft had been converted for the possible use of nuclear weapons. “Belarusian servicemen have received the necessary training in Russian training centers,” Shoigu said. He added that Moscow will retain control over the weapons and any decisions on their use.

Last month, Russian President Vladimir Putin unveiled plans to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in the neighboring ally country of Belarus. Moscow’s deployment is being perceived as another nuclear threat by the NATO allies.

Putin compared Russia’s deployment of nuclear weapons in Belarus to the U.S.’s deployment of similar weapons in Europe, stating that the move does not violate Russia’s nuclear non-proliferation obligations. Russia has helped Belarus upgrade 10 aircraft capable of carrying tactical nuclear warheads. The Russian air force has also been training Belarusian pilots to fly the re-configured planes.

^{Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko (L) watch training launches of ballistic missiles as part of the Grom-2022 Strategic Deterrence Force exercise, from the situational center of the Russian Defense Ministry in Moscow on Feb. 19, 2022. (Image Credit: Press Service of the President of the Republic of Belarus)}

“There is nothing unusual here, first of all, the U.S. has been doing this for decades,” Putin said during an interview last month. “They placed their tactical nuclear weapons in six different allied NATO countries in Europe. We have agreed to do the same thing, without, I stress, violating our international non-proliferation obligations,” the Russian president stated.

Belarus shares a border with Russia on its east and Ukraine on its west. Russian forces used Belarus as a launchpad to initiate an attack on Ukraine’s northern regions in February 2022. Deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus would fulfill Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s longstanding request.

The U.S. has so far played down the Russian move. A senior U.S. administration official indicated the West does not consider the Russian move as any signal that it plans to use nuclear weapons. The official said, “We have not seen any reason to adjust our own strategic nuclear posture nor any indications Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon. We remain committed to the collective defense of the NATO alliance.”