"As part of exercises": Russia delivers nuclear munitions to storage sites in Belarus – video

The Ministry of Defence of Belarus claims that Russia has delivered nuclear munitions to field storage sites in Belarus as part of ongoing military exercises and has posted a corresponding video.

Source: Belarusian Defence Ministry, citing footage from the Russian Ministry of Defence; RIA Novosti, a Kremlin-aligned Russian news outlet, on Telegram

Quote from the Belarusian Defence Ministry: "Video evidence: delivery of nuclear munitions to field storage points in the operational area of a missile unit in the Republic of Belarus as part of military exercises."

Details: The video shows vehicles driving into a forested area as well as missiles being loaded onto launchers.

RIA Novosti reported that Iskander-M ballistic missile systems with "special munitions" have been deployed during the nuclear force exercises in Belarus.

Why this matters: While tactical nuclear weapons are normally stored in specially reinforced underground facilities with multi-layered protection systems, all components – nuclear warheads, explosives and delivery systems such as missiles, shells or bombs – are stored separately and assembled only immediately before use in order to avoid accidental detonation.

At present, it is unclear whether Russia has actually delivered real nuclear munitions to Belarusian territory, whether as part of the exercises or for another purpose.

Background:

• The Belarusian Defence Ministry announced that exercises involving units responsible for the combat use of nuclear weapons began on 18 May in cooperation with Russian forces.
• The Russian Defence Ministry stated that the exercises involve more than 64,000 service members, over 7,800 pieces of military equipment and weapons, including more than 200 missile launch systems, over 140 aircraft, 73 surface vessels and 13 submarines, 8 of which are strategic missile submarines.
• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine described the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus and the joint nuclear exercises of the two dictatorships as an unprecedented challenge to the global security architecture and called on international partners to respond firmly.
• Mark Rutte, Secretary General of NATO, warned that Russia would face devastating consequences if it dared to use nuclear capabilities against Ukraine during the joint exercises with Belarus.

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