Ukraine is seeking an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council to counter Russia’s “nuclear blackmail” after President Vladimir Putin announced the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus. Putin said the move was similar to the United States transferring weapons onto the territory of its allies, an analogy Germany called “misleading”. Ukraine’s foreign ministry called for effective actions to counteract Russia’s nuclear blackmail from the United Kingdom, China, the United States and France. On Saturday, Putin announced Russia would station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus “without violating our international agreements on nuclear non-proliferation”. The Ukrainian foreign ministry accused Russia of breaching its obligations and undermining the “nuclear disarmament architecture and the international security system in general”. Fears have risen that Belarus may join Russia’s offensive against Ukraine, but Lukashenko said he would do so “only if attacked”.
