"Criticism of Using Belarus as a Nuclear Hostage"
Russia Installs Nuclear Weapon Storage and More in Belarus
The Ukrainian government has strongly criticized Russia's announcement of plans to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus and has called for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council. While the transfer of Russia's tactical nuclear weapons has not yet been confirmed, it is known that the Russian military has been preparing for deployment by installing nuclear weapon storage facilities in Belarus since last year, heightening military tensions.
According to CNN on the 26th (local time), the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement strongly condemning Russia's plan to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed hope that the UN Security Council, including the permanent members the United States, the United Kingdom, China, and France, would take effective measures to respond to Russia's nuclear threat and called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council.
Oleksiy Danilov, Secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, also strongly criticized the move on his Twitter account, calling it "the Kremlin taking Belarus as a 'nuclear hostage'." He added, "This will maximize negative perceptions of Russia and President Putin within Belarusian society and destabilize Belarus internally."
Earlier, on the previous day, Russian President Vladimir Putin declared in an interview with state TV Russia 24 that he had discussed the issue (the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons) with Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko and that they had reached an agreement to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. If tactical nuclear weapons are actually deployed in Belarus, it would mark the first time in over 30 years since the end of the Cold War that Russian nuclear weapons are transferred to an Eastern European country.
President Putin also stated, "We will complete the tactical nuclear weapon storage facility by July 1," hinting at the possibility of moving tactical nuclear weapons after July. However, he did not specify the exact types of tactical nuclear weapons to be deployed. Western intelligence agencies believe that the Russian military has already been installing nuclear weapon storage facilities in Belarus since last year.
Immediately following President Putin's announcement, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) strongly opposed the move. NATO issued a statement condemning Russia's nuclear threat as "dangerous and irresponsible," but also stated that it "has not detected changes in Russia's nuclear posture significant enough to adjust our own nuclear posture."
Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, also tweeted that "Belarus accepting Russian nuclear weapons is an irresponsible act of escalating tensions and threatens European security," emphasizing that "if Belarus permits the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons, we are prepared to impose additional sanctions on Belarus."
Belarus is a strategic key point bordering Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the north. The installation of tactical nuclear weapons here is feared to further escalate military tensions across Eastern Europe.
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