Photo: AP/SCANPIX
A Russian Iskander-K missile launched during a military exercise at a range in Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced that he plans to deploy tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus.
Polish President Andrzej Duda said on Tuesday that Russia is already moving some short-range nuclear weapons to neighboring Belarus, warning that it would change the security architecture of the region and the entire NATO military alliance.
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart, Alexander Lukashenko, announced last month that Moscow had already sent some tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus. The two countries initially announced the plan in March. The US and NATO have not confirmed that this actually happened.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg condemned Moscow’s rhetoric as “dangerous and presumptuous” but said in July that the alliance had not observed any change in Russia’s behavior regarding nuclear weapons.
Tactical nuclear weapons are designed for use on the battlefield and have a short range and low yield compared to much more powerful nuclear warheads mounted on long-range missiles. Russia has said it will maintain control over the nuclear weapons it sends to Belarus.
Duda did not elaborate, but said it “obviously changes the security architecture in our part of Europe.”
“It changes the security architecture not only in our immediate neighborhood, but also on NATO’s eastern flank. Thus, in fact, it changes the situation in the entire alliance,” Duda said at a joint press conference with Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo di Souza.
During a visit to Warsaw, Portugal’s president promised to continue supporting Ukraine and other countries in the region, saying it was as important to Portugal as the situation in its neighboring countries.
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2023-08-22 19:44:06
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