On Saturday, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced plans to move nuclear weapons into Belarus, a decision that raised concerns about regional security. The move comes in response to Britain's decision to supply Ukraine with armor-piercing rounds containing depleted uranium which Russia falsely claimed had nuclear components. Putin stated that the construction of storage facilities for the weapons will be completed by 1 July and that Moscow would maintain control over the weapons.
The deployment of nuclear weapons in Belarus is in line with the long-standing practice of the United States. In stationing nuclear weapons in allied countries. U.S. has nuclear weapons in Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey based in the Netherlands. Putin also mentioned that Russia last year had modernized Belarusian military aircraft to make them capable of carrying nuclear warheads, with 10 such planes ready to go. Additionally, nuclear weapons could be launched from the short-range missiles of Iskander that Russia supplied last year to Belarus.
Opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya expressed her concern about the agreement, saying that it “underlines the threat to regional security” from Lukashenko's regime. In response to the U.S. response, the U.S. It said it would monitor the implications, but noted that there were no indications Russia was preparing to use a nuclear weapon. ?
The decision to move nuclear weapons into Belarus has sparked an international debate and raised questions about the implications for regional security. As the tensions between Russia and the West continue to escalate, the deployment of these weapons could have serious consequences for the entire region.