By deploying Russian nuclear weapons to Belarusian territory, self-proclaimed President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko is putting his country at risk of retaliatory attack if Moscow presses the “nuclear button”.
Ihor Kyzym, Ambassador-at-Large for Belarus at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and former Ambassador of Ukraine to Belarus in 2017-2023, said this in an interview with Ukrinform.
Commenting on Lukashenko’s remarks regarding the delivery of tactical nuclear weapons from Russia to Belarus and that Belarus will soon receive the Oreshnik missile system from Russia, the diplomat emphasized that this constitutes a violation of several articles of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons by both countries. Moreover, this action also represents a crime against the Belarusian people.
“The main point is that Belarus does not need these nuclear weapons at all. This is one hundred per cent true! And Lukashenko is committing a crime against his own people because he is actually putting the territory of Belarus under attack. By deploying nuclear weapons, he has jeopardized the security of his country. Furthermore, it is evident that it will never possess these weapons in full. Therefore, if Moscow presses the nuclear button, Belarus will be attacked in response,” Kyzym said.
The diplomat added that he did not see any logic in Lukashenko’s actions.
“To show that Belarus is a nuclear state? That is ridiculous!” said the ambassador-at-large.
The diplomat also drew attention to the fact that Moscow wants to deploy its Oreshnik missile system in Orsha.
“The border is a conditional line, so why transport the launchers to Belarus, 15-20 km from the Russian border? Why not place them in the Smolensk region? What will it give Belarus? Nothing! I think Putin deliberately wants to drag Belarus deeper into the war against Ukraine and prevent Lukashenko from getting out of it,” Kyzym suggested.
As reported by Ukrinform, self-proclaimed President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko said on January 26 that Russian Oreshnik ballistic missiles could arrive in Belarus “any day now”, adding that Russia could deploy these missile systems in one of the Belarusian cities, for example, in Orsha, near Smolensk in western Russia. Lukashenko claimed that Russia’s deployment of the Oreshnik missiles in Belarus is a direct response to the deployment of US missiles in Europe, and said that the Oreshnik missiles will protect Belarus.
The ISW assessed that the deployment of Oreshnik missiles to Belarusian territory does not fundamentally alter Russia’s military capabilities towards Europe and Ukraine, as Russia has long maintained weapons systems with similar payloads and longer ranges in Kaliningrad and elsewhere in mainland Russia.
