Łukašenka: deployment of Russian nukes in Belarus starts

May 25, BPN. Alaksandr Łukašenka made it clear that the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus has begun, according to a Telegram channel affiliated with his press office.

Asked by reporters in Moscow whether the warheads have already arrived in his country, Łukašenka said: “It is possible. I will return and take a look.”

He said Vladimir Putin had signed an edict on the deployment. The Belarusian ruler also promised nuclear safety.

Belarus has been known as a non-nuclear state. It joined the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and gave up its Soviet-era nuclear weapons in the 1990s.

In March, Vladimir Putin announced that Russia was planning to deploy nuclear weapons in Belarus, pointing to the United States having them in several partner countries. Moscow claims that Minsk will not be in control of the nuclear codes.