Benzinga - Russian ally and Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko said nations willing "to join the Union State of Russia and Belarus" will be given nuclear weapons.
What Happened: Days after Moscow transferred some tactical nuclear weapons to Minsk amid differences with the U.S. over the Ukraine war, Lukashenko, in an interview with state-run Russia 1 channel, said if any other country wanted to join a Russia-Belarus union, there could be “nuclear weapons for everyone.”
"No one minds Kazakhstan and other countries having the same close relations that we have with the Russian Federation," Lukashenko said, reported CNN.
"It's very simple," he said, adding, "Join the Union State of Belarus and Russia. That's all: there will be nuclear weapons for everyone."
Why It Matters: Belarusian autocrat's remarks on handing out nuclear weapons to like-minded allies are expected to raise concerns, especially amidst the increasing global proliferation of such weapons. This comes at a time when Vladimir Putin poses a threat to the world with Russia's exponentially growing nuclear arsenal amid his invasion of Ukraine.
Signed in 1999, the Agreement on Establishment of the Union State of Belarus and Russia Treaty provides a legal framework for a comprehensive alliance between the two allies. This pact encompasses various aspects such as economy, information, technology, agriculture, and border security.
Meanwhile, the Belarusian Defence Ministry over the weekend said that Moscow sent another unit of the S-400 mobile, surface-to-air missile systems and will be ready for combat duty soon.
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