Russia’s deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus is not time-bound, the Russian state news agency TASS and Reuters quoted a senior Russian diplomat as saying on Monday.

Ballistic nuclear missiles at a military parade in MoscowPhoto: Russia Ivanov Arkady / Alamy / Alamy / Profimedia

In March, Russia announced it was deploying tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus, a close ally that supported Moscow’s attack on Ukraine. The President of Belarus Oleksandr Lukashenko said that the weapons started arriving last month.

Moscow’s deployment is Moscow’s first move to such a warhead, a shorter-range, less powerful nuclear weapon that could be used on a battlefield outside of Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union.

“Regarding the possible time frame for the presence of Russian tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus, the Russian-Belarusian agreements do not provide for any restrictions in this regard,” said Oleksiy Polishchuk, director of the Department of Post-Soviet States. Interview by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia TASS.

Polishchuk noted that weapons could hypothetically be withdrawn from Belarus if the US and NATO “refrain from undermining the security and sovereignty of Russia and Belarus.”

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