Opinions & Interviews

Lukashenko comments on changes in Russia's nuclear doctrine: ‘New risks for some, not us’

MOSCOW, 8 October (BelTA) — Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko commented on the recent changes to Russia's nuclear doctrine as he arrived at the Kremlin for the CIS summit, BelTA has learned.

The head of state was asked about his feelings regarding the changes to the document, which also relate to Belarus. "Not excited as I was when the most powerful weapon was returned to Belarus. That was when I had feelings. What we are seeing now is the building on what we got in Belarus a long time ago," the president said.When asked about the new risks to the country in the wake of the changes, the Belarusian leader noted that the world is rapidly changing and certain risks are constantly emerging or going away. "New risks for some, that is for sure. But not for us," Aleksandr Lukashenko stated.

The president was also asked about the protocol for considering the use of nuclear weapons. "Look, even if we had our own weapons created and manufactured inside Belarus like North Korea, we would never use them without consulting with our allies. No country would. In our case, without consulting with the Russian Federation," the president said. "If God forbid something happened (as Putin said, ‘you ask, I answer’), and since nuclear weapons is a big deal, certainly we would do more than consult. We would hold very serious talks with the Russian president on the use of these weapons."

The new Russian nuclear doctrine states that Russia will respond with a nuclear strike if any non-nuclear weapons, which pose a threat to sovereignty, are used against the Union State of Russia and Belarus. In this regard, Aleksandr Lukashenko was asked about the red line for him. "The red line is our state border. We have already said it clearly and crisply. If anyone crosses our state border, we will use all the weapons that Belarus has," the Belarusian leader replied.

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