2023-05-25 18:01:39
According to the Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko, Russia has begun transferring nuclear weapons to Belarus, which was announced months ago. “The transfer of nuclear warfare agents (…) has already begun,” Lukashenko told journalists on Thursday during a visit to Moscow. Russian President Vladimir Putin informed him on Wednesday that a corresponding decree had been signed.
Belarusian opposition leader Tichanovskaya wrote on Twitter that the deployment of nuclear weapons would “not only endanger the lives of the Belarusians, but also create a new danger for Ukraine and all of Europe.” The citizens of Belarus would thus be “hostage to the imperial plans of Russia”. Most of the deployed tactical nuclear weapons would have the same explosive power as the atomic bomb that “killed 140,000 people in Hiroshima”.
Lukashenko, who was in Moscow for a regional summit on Thursday, did not say whether the weapons are already in his country. “Maybe I’ll come back, then I’ll see,” he said. Initially, there was no official comment from Russia on the subject.
Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin announced the stationing of tactical nuclear weapons in the neighboring country at the end of March. At the time, he said in a television interview that he had agreed with Lukashenko that Russia and Belarus would now “do the same” as the US on the territory of their allies.
In April, Belarusian soldiers had already begun training on nuclear-capable missile systems. According to Putin, ten aircraft that can be equipped with nuclear weapons have now been delivered to Belarus, and a special weapons depot should also be completed by early July.
Western states had condemned the announcement – also because Putin himself had repeatedly spoken regarding the possibility of using nuclear weapons since the Russian offensive in Ukraine began. According to their own statements, however, experts and Western government representatives do not assume that the transfer of tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus will change the course of the Ukraine conflict.
Tactical nuclear weapons can cause devastating damage if deployed, but have a shorter range than so-called long-range strategic weapons.
Belarus, which has been ruled by Lukashenko since 1994, not only borders Russia and Ukraine, but also EU member states Poland and Lithuania. Lukashenko had allowed the Russian army to launch the offensive once morest Ukraine from Belarusian territory.
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