"Mirror response": Russia and Belarus signed documents on the deployment of non-strategic nuclear weapons in Belarus

The heads of the defense departments of the Russian Federation and Belarus, Sergei Shoigu and Viktor Khrenin, signed documents that determine the procedure for maintaining Russian non-strategic nuclear weapons in a special storage facility on the territory of the Republic of Belarus. The corresponding ceremony was held on Thursday, May 25.

According to Shoigu, the steps taken by Moscow and Minsk comply with all existing international legal obligations. The minister separately stressed that Russia does not transfer its nuclear weapons to Belarus, and control over them and the decision to use them remain with Moscow.

"In the context of an extremely sharp aggravation of threats and the activity of joint NATO nuclear missions, we are forced to take retaliatory measures in the military-nuclear sphere. In accordance with the decision of our supreme commanders-in-chief, work has been organized on the deployment of non-strategic nuclear weapons of the Russian Federation on the territory of the Republic of Belarus," Shoigu said.

He recalled that the Iskander-M operational-tactical complex, capable of using missiles not only in conventional, but also in nuclear equipment, was handed over to the Belarusian side. In addition, some of the aircraft of the Belarusian Air Force were converted for the possible use of nuclear weapons, and the military personnel underwent the necessary training.

In turn, the Minister of Defense of the Republic of Belarus noted that the deployment of Russian non-strategic nuclear weapons in the republic should force the authorities of a number of countries to think about the inadmissibility of escalation of the situation.

"This will be an effective response to the aggressive policy of unfriendly countries and, we hope, will make their leadership think about the inadmissibility of further escalation of the situation in the region," Khrenin said.

• Defense Ministers of Russia and Belarus Sergei Shoigu and Viktor Khrenin
• © Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation

He also stressed that Minsk pays close attention to the readiness of the armed forces to fulfill the assigned tasks, including the protection of the western borders of the Union State.

"Within the framework of military and military-technical cooperation between our countries, measures have been taken to increase the combat potential of the regional grouping of troops, including equipping with new modern weapons, such as the Iskander-M OTRK, and the S-400 anti-aircraft missile system. The Su-25 aircraft were re-equipped with the possibility of using aviation weapons in nuclear equipment, "Khrenin recalled.

He added that the events held and planned emphasize the strategic format of interaction between the defense ministries of the two countries.

"In the future, the Republic of Belarus is resolutely aimed at strengthening and developing close cooperation in the interests of ensuring the security of the Union State," the minister concluded.

Later, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko on the air of Channel One said that the movement of tactical nuclear weapons to the territory of the republic had already begun. According to him, Vladimir Putin informed Minsk that he had signed a corresponding decree.

"We had to prepare storage locations and so on. We did it, so the movement of nuclear weapons began," the Belarusian leader said.

According to him, there is no reason to worry about the safety of tactical nuclear weapons, since Belarusians are "punctual, neat, economic people."

Tactical Placement

Recall that on March 25, the President of the Russian Federation in an interview with the Russia 24 TV channel said that Moscow and Minsk had agreed to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. Then Putin announced that crew training would start on April 3, and by July 1, the construction of a special storage facility would be completed. He added that Belarus has long asked to deploy Russian nuclear weapons on its territory. And this, according to the head of state, does not violate the relevant international obligations.

• Complex "Iskander-M"
• RIA Novosti

Russia also drew attention to the reaction of Western countries that condemned the steps of Moscow and Minsk. Commenting on the statements of a number of politicians, the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov recalled that, indignant at the decision of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus, the West does not raise the topic of American nuclear weapons deployed in European countries.

"The collective West is not inclined to somehow recall the topic of American nuclear weapons, which are based here in Europe, around our country, but in this case they are prone to such a hysterical reaction to our plans to build storage facilities for tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus," Peskov stated.

In the interests of the Union State

According to analysts, the signing of documents on the procedure for maintaining nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus formalizes this process within the framework of the unified defense policy of the Union State.

"Earlier, the parties, at the initiative of Belarus, agreed on the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons on its territory. In addition, Russia handed over the Iskander complex to a neighboring country, helped to convert aircraft for the possible use of nuclear weapons. Accordingly, the signing of the document preceded the direct deployment of Russian weapons by Minsk, "military observer Alexander Khrolenko said in an interview with RT.

• Alexander Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin
• © photo.roscongress.org

From his point of view, this step was an exceptional response to the actions of the West, including the transfer of depleted uranium ammunition by Great Britain to the Kyiv regime.

"This is a mirror response. Moscow and Minsk are now doing what Washington and its satellites have been doing for decades. The Pentagon stores dozens of B61 thermonuclear bombs at air bases in Germany, Italy, Belgium, and the Netherlands, which can be used for a potential attack on Russia and its allies, "Khrolenko said.

However, now, in the event of a local conflict with neighboring countries, Belarus will receive additional options, the expert emphasized.

"This agreement is designed to extinguish the recent sharp wave of statements from Poland against Belarus and Russia. The range of the Iskander missiles, elusive for NATO air defense, makes it possible to keep the whole of Poland, Slovakia, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, not to mention Ukraine, at gunpoint from Belarusian territory. Blitzkrieg in this case is excluded, and hostile neighbors will be more careful, "Khrolenko said.

In addition, according to him, in the current military-political situation in Eastern Europe, it is impossible to consider Belarus in isolation from the joint group of troops.

"Regional defense cooperation is being developed and strengthened, ties are becoming more diverse. Nothing that the United States and Europe would not do, Moscow and Minsk do not. This naturally causes indignation in the West: a return to reality can be painful. But the United States and NATO will have to return to the reality of a multipolar world with equal and indivisible security, "the analyst emphasized.

The deployment of non-strategic nuclear weapons in Belarus is a natural response to the West's escalation of tension, Andrei Koshkin, an expert at the Association of Military Political Scientists, head of the Department of Political Analysis and Socio-Psychological Processes at the Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, said in a conversation with RT.

"Both for the Russian Federation and for the Republic of Belarus, it is obvious that the degree of threat is growing, and the United States did not respond to the proposal to withdraw nuclear weapons from the territory of European states. Therefore, Moscow is deploying its tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of the Union State. It posts, not transmits. This means that the entire process of management and decision-making on its possible application is located in Moscow. In Belarus, specialists in the maintenance of Iskander complexes and relevant aviation specialists have been trained - the Su-25 can be equipped with nuclear weapons, "Koshkin said.

He expressed confidence that such measures will effectively strengthen the defense capability of the Union State.

"All this is done in the interests of the Union State. We see how dynamically the West is exacerbating the situation. NATO, led by the United States, has brought its infrastructure closer to the borders of the Russian Federation. The decision to deploy non-strategic nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus will fully ensure the security of both Minsk and Moscow, "Koshkin concluded.