Russia and Belarus begin second stage of tactical nuclear weapons exercises

Russia and Belarus have begun the second stage of their tactical weapons nuclear exercises, the Kremlin's Defense Ministry announced on June 11, amid escalating tensions between Moscow and the West.

“The situation on the European continent is quite tense, provoked every day by new decisions and actions of European capitals hostile to Russia, and especially by Washington,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in reported remarks. by Reuters.

Last month, Russia said the exercises were a response to what it described as “provocative statements and threats by some Western officials against the Russian Federation.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly made nuclear threats against Ukraine and the West since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. These threats have not materialized and Russia continues to wage its war total without using its nuclear arsenal.

In May, Putin visited Belarus and met with Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko to discuss the Belarusian military's potential participation in Russia's non-strategic nuclear exercises.

The latest exercises will see Russian and Belarusian forces training “in the combat use of non-strategic nuclear weapons”, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

Both leaders dismissed foreign concerns about the nuclear exercises. Lukashenko said it was the third exercise since the alleged deployment of Russian tactical nuclear warheads to Belarus in 2023.

Putin said training Russia to use nuclear weapons was a routine procedure.

“The only difference is that after the deployment of part of non-strategic nuclear capabilities in Belarus, we carry them out together with our Belarusian allies,” Putin said.

Belarus has been a key ally of Moscow and supported Russian aggression against Ukraine, although it has not committed its own forces directly to the hostilities. The country is also believed to host Russian tactical nuclear weapons on its territory.

The first stage of the exercises, ordered by Putin on May 6, involved missile units in Russia's Southern Military District, including the occupied territories of Ukraine.

Lukashenko ordered a sudden inspection of the country's tactical nuclear weapons launchers the next day.

Nuclear weapons believed to be in Belarus cannot be used without authorization from Moscow.

The United States may need to increase its deployment of strategic nuclear weapons in the face of growing threats from China, Russia and other adversaries, a White House official said June 7.