MINSK, June 13. /TASS/. Minsk will not hesitate to use nuclear weapons in case of aggression against Belarus, President Alexander Lukashenko said Tuesday.
"I believe it is unlikely that anyone would want to wage war against a country that has such weapons. It is a weapon of deterrence," Lukashenko said, according to BelTA. "God forbid if I have to make a decision to use this weapon in modern times. But I won’t hesitate should there be an aggression against us."
Talking about the reasons behind the decision to deploy Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, the president said: "Why was it necessary? It was necessary so that not a single bastard can set foot on Belarusian soil."
Lukashenko underscored that there can be only one reason to use nuclear weapons - an aggression against Belarus.
"The response will be immediate. I have said this repeatedly before," the Belarusian leader stated, adding that he would like to avoid any situation where such measures would be necessary.
On March 25, Putin said that Russia would place its tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus at Minsk’s own request, precisely the way the US has long been doing on the territory of its allies. According to the Russian head of state, the construction of a storage facility for the tactical nuclear warheads in Belarus is scheduled to be completed on July 1.
Moscow has already handed over to Minsk the nuclear-capable Iskander missile system and provided assistance in re-equipping Belarusian aircraft to enable them to carry and launch nuclear munitions. On June 9, Putin said during a meeting with Lukashenko that deployment of Russian nuclear weapons in Belarus will begin immediately after the storage facilities that are to house them are completed on July 7-8.