Belarus announced Monday that it has begun military exercises with Russia designed to rehearse nuclear weapon deployment and operational procedures using atomic weapons that Moscow has stationed within Belarusian territory.
The authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko has permitted Russia to position tactical nuclear weapons within his nation’s borders. Last December, Russia declared that its newest intermediate-range nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile system had been deployed to Belarus, a country that shares borders with Ukraine and the NATO nations of Poland, Latvia and Lithuania.
According to the Belarusian Defense Ministry, the military exercises will include missile forces and aircraft operations.
“During the exercise, in cooperation with the Russian side, it is planned to practice the delivery of nuclear weapons and preparations for their use,” the ministry said in a statement. The ministry noted that the exercises will concentrate on instructing military personnel in stealthy movement over extensive distances.
Officials stated that these military operations were scheduled beforehand and were not directed toward any specific third-party nations.
Lukashenko has maintained authoritarian control over the country of 9.5 million people for over thirty years. Western nations have imposed multiple sanctions on his administration due to human rights violations and for permitting Moscow to utilize Belarusian territory during the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
During 2024, the Kremlin unveiled an updated nuclear policy that brought Belarus within Russia’s nuclear protection framework. Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated that Moscow will maintain authority over its nuclear arsenal positioned in Belarus, while permitting its partner nation to choose targets during potential conflicts.
Russia has employed conventional versions of the Oreshnik weapon — named after the Russian term for hazelnut tree — against Ukrainian targets twice: once in November 2024 and again in January.
Putin has declared that Oreshnik’s multiple warheads descend at velocities reaching Mach 10 and cannot be stopped by defensive systems, claiming that multiple conventional strikes from such weapons could match the destruction of nuclear attacks.
Intermediate-range weapons have flight capabilities between 500 to 5,500 kilometers (310 to 3,400 miles). These weapon systems were prohibited under a Soviet-era agreement that both Washington and Moscow withdrew from in 2019.
Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya condemned the military exercises, stating that Russian nuclear weapon placement has “turned Belarus into a target.”
“Lukashenko has turned Belarus into a platform for Russian threats, but Belarusians don’t need these weapons,” Tsikhanouskaya told The Associated Press. “Only a free Belarus will become a source of security, not nuclear blackmail, in Europe.”
