Nausėda: possible nuclear deployment in Belarus fuels regional tension

July 10, BPN. Tension in the region has heightened because of the possible deployment of nuclear weapons and arrival of Wagner mercenaries in Belarus, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda said on July 10, previewing the NATO summit scheduled to take place in Vilnius on July 11 and 12.

He said that participants will discuss a new defense plan, a new structure and model of forces, and “new requirements to defend all allies,” he said (quotes translated from Russian).

Nausėda welcomed Germany’s decision to send a brigade-size contingent to Lithuania. “It is necessary to think of collective security in broader terms, facilitate decision-making across NATO’s eastern flank and build up our capabilities on the eastern front. This enhances our deterrence capabilities,” he said.

On July 7, presidents of Lithuania, Latvia and Poland issued a joint letter urging NATO to counter threats posed by Russia and Belarus.

Nausėda, Latvian President Egils Levits and Polish President Andrzej Duda expressed concern about the military integration between the two countries, the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, and the possible arrival of Russian mercenaries there.

The leaders are also worried that Minsk may create a new wave of mass migration and humanitarian crisis at the EU border.

The three leaders called for solidarity and unity within NATO, and suggested that the alliance review its nuclear deterrence policy, fill pre-positioned stock on the eastern flank, and make allies more resilient to hybrid threats.

Poland is to send more than 1,000 troops and nearly 200 pieces of equipment from the 12th and 17th Mechanized Brigades to the east of the country, Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak tweeted on July 8.

The move shows Poland’s readiness to respond to destabilization attempts near its borders, he noted.