Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced that strategic nuclear weapons will be deployed in Belarus. The decision was made following discussions with Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko. Putin, who said the move would not violate nuclear non-proliferation agreements, compared it to decades of U.S. deployments of nuclear weapons once morest its European allies. Putin has made it clear that while nuclear weapons are being deployed to Belarus, he will not hand over control of them. Belarus is also Russia’s closest ally in its invasion of Ukraine. Russia will start training soldiers to handle weapons from next week. The construction of a storage facility for Russian nuclear weapons in Belarus will be completed by July 1. Russia has already transferred some nuclear-capable Iskander missile systems to Belarus. It is not clear which new weapons will be delivered to Belarus or which weapons will be deployed. At the same time, the US Defense Department responded that it does not believe that Russia is preparing to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine. In addition to Russia, Belarus also shares borders with Ukraine and NATO members Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia. This is the first time since the mid-1990s that Russia has deployed its nuclear weapons outside the country.
At the same time, Oleksiy Danilov, adviser to the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, said that Russia’s move is a step towards internal instability in Belarus and will fuel anti-Russian sentiment in Belarus. Danilov added that Russia has made Belarus their nuclear hostage. NATO responded by calling Russia’s move dangerous and irresponsible. NATO has also stated that it is closely monitoring the situation.
There is no military alliance between Russia and China: Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Russia and China are not forming a military alliance. During an interview with the national media, Putin said that the two countries have nothing to hide when it comes to military cooperation and that Russia does not threaten any country.
Putin clarified that Russia and China have cooperation in the military and technological sphere, but that does not mean creating a military alliance. Putin accused the West and NATO of trying to create a new axis like Italy, Germany and Japan built during World War II.