The Kremlin on Monday said Western criticism would not change plans announced by President Vladimir Putin to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in neighbouring Belarus.
The announcement by Russian President Vladimir Putin that he intends to deploy tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus appears to be another attempt to raise the stakes in the conflict in Ukraine.
Putin said work would be completed on building storage units for tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus on July 1, a move he likened to US nuclear deployments in Europe.
Vladimir Putin s preparation to station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus marks the country s latest attempt to use the threat of a nuclear war to ramp up tensions with the US and NATO over the invasion of Ukraine. Russia has the world’s biggest stockpile of nuclear warheads.