Belarus launched an exercise in coordination with Russia involving Belarus military units tasked with the combat use of nuclear weapons and nuclear support operations, the Belarusian defense ministry said on Monday, May 18.
The ministry said the exercises are aimed at increasing the readiness of Belarusian armed forces to use “modern means of destruction, including special munitions.”
The exercise is being led by the chief of the Belarusian General Staff, who also serves as first deputy defense minister, according to the statement.
Belarus said missile forces and military aviation units are taking part in the exercise. During the training, Belarusian and Russian personnel are expected to practice the delivery of nuclear munitions and preparations for their potential use.
Minsk’s defense ministry said a key feature of the exercise would be testing the ability of forces to carry out combat missions from unprepared locations across Belarus.
Minsk officials said the exercise will focus on concealment, long-distance movement and operational calculations related to the deployment of forces and equipment.
Belarus described the exercise as a planned training event conducted within the framework of their “Union State” with Russia and said they are “not directed against third countries” and do not pose a threat to regional security.
Questions remain unanswered as to how Belarus, formally a non-nuclear power, could maintain pilots and missile launch officers reportedly trained and certified for nuclear weapons delivery.
At the time of publication, the Ukrainian defense ministry had not responded to requests from the Kyiv Post editorial staff for comment on this situation.
Threats from Belarus
President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday, May 15, that Ukrainian intelligence has evidence Russia is attempting to draw Belarus more directly into the war against Ukraine and possibly into future operations against NATO countries.
Following a meeting with Ukraine’s military and intelligence leadership, Zelensky said Kyiv had identified additional contacts between Russian officials and Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko aimed at persuading Minsk to join new Russian military operations.
“We continue recording Russian attempts to pull Belarus deeper into the war against Ukraine,” Zelensky added. “Ukraine possesses details of the conversation between Russia and Belarus.”
Russia is reportedly considering operational plans with forces launched from Belarusian territory either toward Ukraine’s Chernihiv-Kyiv sectors or against a NATO member state, according to Zelensky.
The Ukrainian president warned that Kyiv would defend itself if Lukashenko decided to directly support Russian military operations.
Before that, Lukashenko announced a rotational mobilization of selected military units to get them ready for combat.
Lukashenko said the new approach was in preparation for a possible “ground operation,” state news agency Belta reported on May 12.
“We will selectively mobilize units, the armed forces, in order to prepare them for war,” Lukashenko said. “God willing, it will be possible to avoid it. We are all preparing for war.”