Russia plans to deploy its new Oreshnik missile system, recently used for the first time against Ukraine, in neighboring Belarus as a deterrent to the West.
“These complexes will be put into service with the Russian Strategic Missile Forces and, in parallel, we will start deploying them on the territory of Belarus,” President Vladimir Putin said in Minsk on Friday during talks with Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko .
Putin mentioned the second half of 2025 as the date for the deployment of what he described as a “terrible” weapon.
Russia fired the newly developed medium-range missile at the Ukrainian city of Dnipro in November as a warning and deterrent.
According to Moscow, this was in response to Ukraine’s permission to use Western long-range missiles to attack Russian territory.
Lukashenko, whose country borders Ukraine and supported Russia’s large-scale invasion in 2022, also urged Putin to station the new weapon in Belarus.
During the meeting on Friday, the two presidents also signed a treaty on mutual security guarantees.
In doing so, nuclear-armed Russia assured its neighbor of the possible deployment of its full arsenal in the event of an existential attack from outside.
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Putin has stationed tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, but control of the warheads remains in Moscow.
Minsk and Moscow celebrate 25 years as a union state
Meanwhile, in the Belarusian capital Minsk, both states celebrated the 25th anniversary of the creation of their union state, which until now existed mainly on paper, in the Belarusian capital Minsk.
However, the new treaty on security guarantees contains the obligations for the defense and protection of the sovereignty and independence of both Belarus and Russia.
During his visit, Putin recalled that the use of nuclear weapons is enshrined in Russia’s new nuclear doctrine.
Under this arrangement, Russia can also use its nuclear weapons in the event of an attack with conventional weapons and a related threat to Russia’s survival.
Lukashenko, who is considered Europe’s last dictator, holds on to power mainly thanks to Putin. The 70-year-old is running for president again in January, after more than thirty years in office.
