United States, No Indication Russia Plans to Use Nuclear Weapons

The United States (US) has not seen any indication that Russia is preparing to use nuclear weapons. This was stated by the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, Friday (16/5/2023).

Blinken said the US will continue to monitor the situation very closely and very carefully. "But we currently have no reason to adjust our own nuclear posture," Blinken said, as quoted by Anadolu Agency.

"We see no indication that Russia is preparing to use nuclear weapons.

The president said again this week, that we remain committed to defending NATO, every inch of its territory, so that's our North Star," Blinken said.

"For Belarus itself, this is just another example of (Belarusian President Aleksandr) Lukaskehnko making the irresponsible and provocative choice to surrender control of Belarusian sovereignty against the will of the Belarusian people," he added.

Earlier, Putin had announced that his troops had succeeded in transferring the first batch of Russian nuclear weapons to Belarusian territory. The transfer comes amid rising tensions with NATO over the Kremlin's war in Ukraine.

"The first nuclear charge was sent to the territory of Belarus. But only the first," Putin said at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Petersburg, according to Bloomberg News. 

"This is the first part. But at the end of the summer, at the end of the year, we will finish this work," he continued.

Lukashenko said Tuesday the deployment of Russian nuclear weapons in Belarus was a "necessary" decision, so that "not a single foreign soldier ever sets foot on Belarusian soil again," noting that it was an "urgent request" to Moscow to guarantee his country's security.

"The bombs are three times more powerful than the ones the US used in 1945 on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki," he said.

Earlier this year, Putin announced that Russia would deploy tactical nuclear weapons and finish building a special storage facility for them in neighboring Belarus.