Belarus said on Tuesday it had decided to accept the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons on its territory after years of pressure from the United States and NATO allies for Minsk to change its geopolitical orientation, Reuters reported.

In a press release on Tuesday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus justified the decision to expand military cooperation with Russia as a measure of protection against the West.

“For the past two and a half years, the Republic of Belarus has been subjected to unprecedented political, economic and informational pressure from the United States, Great Britain and their NATO allies, as well as from the member states of the European Union. The press release refers to an obvious reference to sanctions , imposed against Belarus following the rigging of the November 2020 presidential election and the brutal suppression of the opposition that followed.

The European Union and other Western chancellors do not recognize the results of these elections, which were marked by massive falsifications and after which the authorities in Minsk declared that Oleksandr Lukashenko received 80% of the votes.

“Given these circumstances and the legitimate national security concerns and risks arising from them, Belarus is forced to respond by strengthening its own security and defense capabilities,” Lukashenko’s Foreign Ministry said in a press release published on Tuesday.

He emphasized that plans to deploy tactical nuclear weapons do not contradict international treaties on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, as Belarus will not actually control the weapons that will remain in Russia’s hands.

That Russia has announced that it will send nuclear weapons to Belarus

The comments from the Belarusian foreign ministry came after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced last Saturday that he had agreed with Minsk leader Oleksandr Lukashenko to deploy tactical nuclear weapons on Belarusian soil.

“There is nothing unusual here: firstly, the USA has been doing it for decades. They have long since deployed their tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of their allies,” Vladimir Putin said in an interview with Russian television on Saturday.

He emphasized that such a step would not violate the agreement on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, and also reminded that Lukashenko had been raising this issue for a long time.

EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell warned Belarus on Sunday against placing Russian nuclear weapons on its territory, saying the move could trigger further sanctions.

“Placing Russian nuclear weapons in Belarus would be an irresponsible escalation and a threat to European security. Belarus can stop it. It’s their choice,” he wrote on Twitter.

Also on Sunday, NATO criticized Russia for its “dangerous and irresponsible” nuclear rhetoric.

“NATO is vigilant and we are closely monitoring the situation. We have not noticed any changes in Russia’s nuclear posture that would force us to adjust our own position,” the alliance spokesman said.

The White House later said there was currently no indication that Russia had already transferred nuclear weapons to Belarus.

Follow the latest events of the 398th day of the war in Ukraine LIVETEXT on HOTNEWS.RO.