Putin Says First Nuclear Projectiles Delivered To Belarus
- 16.06.2023, 18:44
According to him, the full deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in our country will be completed “before the end of summer”.
The first nuclear projectiles were delivered to Belarus. This was stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on June 16.
“We will transfer part of this tactical nuclear weapon to Belarusian territory. It happened. But only the first part. This is the first part. We will complete this work by the end of summer,” Putin said.
The President of Russia added that nuclear weapons are created in order to ensure the security and existence of the Russian state. He stressed that Russia has more nuclear weapons than NATO countries.
“They know about it and keep trying to persuade us to start talks on reductions. Fuck you, as our people say,” Putin said to the applause of the audience.
On May 25 the defense ministers of Belarus and Russia signed documents defining the procedure for keeping Russian non-strategic nuclear weapons in a special storage facility on the territory of Belarus. The head of the Russian military department Sergei Shoigu then specified that Russia, while deploying non-strategic nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus, does not transfer it to the republic, control over it and the decision on its use remains with Moscow.
Aliaksandr Lukashenka said earlier that if Russia deploys its tactical nuclear weapons in our country, then Belarus will manage them.
“Everything will be according to the law and according to the rules. There are no uncontrolled weapons in Belarus and cannot be. Therefore, we will manage everything that exists in Belarus,” Lukashenka said in his message to the Belarusian people on March 31.
However, his statement was quickly refuted in the Kremlin. Later, Lukashenka himself admitted that in order to use the nuclear weapons deployed in Belarus, he would have to phone Putin.
On June 13, White House National Security Council coordinator John Kirby said that the United States so far sees no signs that would indicate that the transfer of Russian tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus has occurred.
“Regarding Belarus, all I can say is that we have not seen any signs that could force us to change our own position on nuclear readiness or capability,” Kirby was quoted by Evropeyskaya Pravda.
Kirby also stressed that Aliaksandr Lukashenka's rhetoric “conforms to a reckless and irresponsible approach to talk about nuclear potential”.