The President of the United States, Joe Biden, admitted to journalists this Friday that he had reacted “extremely negatively” to the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. The president commented on the news hours after his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko announced that the use of nuclear weapons had already begun.
After the Eurasian Economic Union summit this week in the Kremlin, Lukashenko told reporters that Russia shouldn’t worry about the safety of its weapons because Belarusians are “punctual, careful and hardworking” people.
A brief comment from White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre, who accused the Kremlin of resorting to “irresponsible and provocative” decisions, further fueled the controversy.
The response from the Russian embassy in the US was immediate: “It is the sovereign right of Russia and Belarus. Ensuring their security by any means we deem necessary amidst an all-out hybrid war that Washington has unleashed against us.”
Moscow’s actions are “completely in line with our obligations under international law,” the embassy said on Saturday on its Telegram account, pointing out that Nuclear weapons will not be transferred to Belarussince “the control over them and the decision to use them” remain with the Russian side.
“Before blaming others, Washington could use some self-reflection,” the Russian diplomats wrote, referring to the US large arsenal of its nuclear weapons that it maintains in Europe for decades. In addition, the US practiced arsenal exchanges with its NATO allies and trained them on scenarios of using nuclear weapons against Russia, the Russian response recalls.