Belarus Conducts Nuclear Drills Following Announcement by Russia Amid Tensions with the West

Belarus initiated exercises on Tuesday involving missiles and warplanes capable of carrying tactical nuclear weapons, which have been deployed by close ally Russia amid tensions with the West over Ukraine.

The Belarusian drills commenced following Russia’s announcement of similar exercises simulating the use of battlefield nuclear weapons in response to statements from Western officials hinting at deeper involvement in the Ukrainian conflict. This marked the first public disclosure of such an exercise by Moscow.

Belarus’ Defense Minister, Viktor Khrenin, stated that a unit of Iskander short-range missiles and a squadron of Su-25 fighter jets will participate in the drills.

Conducted jointly with Russia, the maneuvers coincided with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s fifth term inauguration on Tuesday, where he vowed to safeguard Russia’s security.

Last year, Russia positioned some of its tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, a country that also shares borders with Ukraine and NATO members such as Poland, Latvia, and Lithuania. Belarus’ authoritarian President, Alexander Lukashenko, has maintained strong ties with Russia and allowed his country to serve as a staging ground for the conflict in Ukraine.

Moscow has stressed that the tactical nuclear weapons stationed in Belarus remain under Russian military control.

Unlike nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles designed to devastate entire cities, tactical nuclear weapons are geared toward use against troops on the battlefield and are less potent. These weapons encompass aerial bombs, warheads for short-range missiles, and artillery munitions.

The deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, which shares a border of 1,084 kilometers (673 miles) with Ukraine, enables Russian aircraft and missiles to reach potential targets more swiftly should Moscow choose to utilize them. It also extends Russia’s capability to target multiple NATO allies in Eastern and Central Europe.

Both Putin and Lukashenko asserted that the deployment of Russian nuclear weapons to Belarus was a response to perceived Western threats.

Lukashenko characterized the drills on Tuesday as “purely defensive,” stating that the Russian nuclear weapons serve as a deterrent against aggression toward Belarus. He emphasized, “This is a defensive weapon, a tool for deterrence.”

The Belarusian leader noted that the exercises will involve the transfer of tactical nuclear weapons from storage to military units, where they will be mounted on missiles and affixed to warplanes. Missile units will practice covert deployment to firing positions to simulate a response to an attack on Belarus.

Belarus’ opposition figure, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who left the country under official pressure after challenging Lukashenko in the presidential election of August 2020, met with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on Tuesday and criticized the presence of Russian nuclear weapons in Belarus.

“Nuclear weapons make Belarus and its people vulnerable,” she remarked. “The presence of Russian nuclear arms in Belarus poses a direct threat to the lives and well-being of all Europeans.”