Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko, a Moscow ally, said today that his country was ready to host “nuclear weapons” in the event of a Western threat amid a crisis with Ukraine.
“If necessary (…) we will develop not only nuclear weapons, but also supernuclear weapons, very promising weapons, in order to defend our territory,” Lukashenko was quoted as saying by Belarusian media.
This could happen if “stupid measures” are taken by “opponents” of Belarus, Russia’s ally in the crisis with Ukraine over the Ukraine issue, Lukashenko said.
“Unless there are threats from unfriendly countries against Belarus, there will be no need for nuclear weapons here for a hundred years,” he added.
After the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, Belarus, like other former Soviet republics, had renounced nuclear weapons developed on its territory under American pressure and agreed to hand them over to Russia.
Belarus’s constitution then provided that the country remained a “nuclear-free zone”. That article, however, was replaced by a new version of Lukashenko’s proposed law, which Belarus is expected to vote on in a referendum on February 27.
This article will be replaced by another one that “excludes military attack” from the territory of Belarus.
The United States is concerned about the amendment, which could allow Russia to develop nuclear weapons in Belarus, a country bordering Ukraine and Poland.
Russia has deployed tens of thousands of troops along its border with Ukraine since 2021, fueling fears of an invasion and provoking the worst crisis with the West since the end of the Cold War.
Large-scale Russian-Belarusian military exercises are also currently taking place in Belarus.
Mr Lukashenko also said that Belarus was considering purchasing Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile systems to deploy them near the capital, Minsk, according to the state-run Belta news agency.
According to the same source, Lukashenko also said that Belarus could keep some of the military equipment brought by Russia and that it planned to discuss the issue with Moscow.
President Alexander Lukashenko is expected in Russia tomorrow, Friday, for talks with his Russian counterpart and ally Vladimir Putin.
Source: Capital
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