Putin said last month that the first Russian nuclear warheads were delivered to the territory of Belarus adding that they were placed there for deterrence. It is not clear how much of that arsenal Putin intends to move and US and Western officials have not publicly confirmed that any weapons have been transferred to Belarus. But the senior DIA officials told a small group of reporters Friday that analysts have no reason to doubt Putins claims. The officials would not disclose why they believe that. They acknowledged that the weapons are difficult for the US intelligence community to track even through satellite imagery. But they said they do not believe the movement of the weapons to Belarus would alter the global nuclear landscape or increase the risk of a nuclear incident because they would be in storage rather than forward deployed and controlled by Russian forces. The U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller similarly declined to answer questions earlier this month about where the weapons actually are but he said the US expects Russia to uphold its nonproliferation obligations. The UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace told that the UK had seen signs of this progressing and noted that Putin doesnt always lie. When pressed however Wallace also declined to elaborate on the signs he had seen. But he said that the US has not seen any reason to adjust our own nuclear posture nor any indication Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon. It would most likely be entirely controlled by Russia the officials said. Other sources told however that there are various facilities in Belarus dating back to the Soviet era that could feasibly house some of the nuclear weapons. The Russian President Aleksander Lukashenko said in the face of aggression he would show no hesitation in using the Russian tactical nuclear weapons stationed on Belarusian soil. He also said that in the event of any deployment to Belarus and upholds its obligations under the Treaty on the Non Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons he said during a briefing on July . We will be paying close attention to any deviation by Russia. s Oren Liebermann and Kylie Atwood contributed to this report. In his remarks last month Putin said the rest of the tacticalnuclear weapons Russia intend to move to Belarus will be transferred by the end of the summer or by theend of the year. In a statement last month the Russian President said the weapons would be transferred in the next few months. He did not give a specific date for the transfer but said it would not be before the summer of 2015 or before the fall of 2015. The US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that we continue to actively monitor reports of the RussiaBelarus arrangement to ensure that Russia maintains control of its weapons. He said the State Department expects Russiato uphold itsNon Proliferation obligations and we will be watching closely to see if Russia makes good on those commitments. The State Department also said the U.N. Security Council has not yet issued a communique on the situation. in response to a request from the Russian Foreign Ministry for clarification on the status of the Russian Belarussian nuclear arsenal. The Foreign Ministry issued a statement on July 25 saying that the Russian government has not made any changes to its position on the issue.
Putin claims Russia has moved nuclear weapons to Belarus. US intel officials: ‘No reason to doubt’ Putin’s claim.
