Belarusian President Oleksandr Lukashenko said on Tuesday that Russian tactical nuclear weapons will be physically deployed on the territory of Belarus “within several days”, according to the Russian news agency TASS.

According to the Belarusian news agency Belta, Lukashenko said on Tuesday that nuclear weapons will be placed in Belarus at his personal request to Vladimir Putin to guarantee the country’s security.

“I first asked the Russian president, then I insisted in a friendly way that these weapons be returned to me [tactice, nu strategice]. At the moment, this will be enough,” he said.

Why does Lukashenko say that he does not need strategic nuclear missiles

Lukashenko added, Belta reports, that he currently does not need strategic nuclear weapons, for example, Russian Topol missiles in Belarus: “Why do I need strategic Topol missiles? However, we are preparing firing points for these weapons. All but one are working. Therefore, if necessary, we are ready to deploy these weapons at any moment.”

“Topol is an intercontinental missile. Am I going to war with the United States? No, I’m not going to. This weapon [nucleare tactice] They are enough for me so far,” the Belarusian president added.

“Why do we need them? So that no foreign soldier would set foot on Belarusian soil again. The answer will be provided immediately. I have already stated this several times,” continued Lukashenko.

Emphasizing the significant power of nuclear weapons that will be placed in Belarus, the head of state said: “I think that almost no one will want to fight with a country that has such weapons. It is a weapon of deterrence. God forbid that I decide to use this weapon. But there will be no hesitation in case of aggression against us,” said Putin’s ally.

Tactical nuclear weapons will remain under Russian control

Russia will begin deploying tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus after special storage facilities are ready on July 7-8, Putin told Lukashenko at a meeting on Friday in Sochi. “So everything is according to plan, everything is stable,” Putin said.

In March, the head of the Kremlin said that he would transfer tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus, which would remain under the control of the Russian military.

The decision implemented by Putin is closely watched by both the United States and its NATO allies in Europe, as well as China, which has repeatedly warned against the use of nuclear weapons in the conflict in Ukraine, Reuters notes.

The United States has criticized Putin’s deployment of nuclear weapons, but has said it has no plans to change its position on strategic nuclear weapons and sees no signs that Russia is preparing to use nuclear weapons.

It is still unclear where Russian nuclear warheads will be stored in Belarus, which will remain under Russian control.