27.03.2023
Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a joint statement with China last week, which stated that “all nuclear-weapon states should not deploy nuclear weapons abroad,” but on Saturday (25th) he announced that he would deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. Putin’s move may make it more difficult for Beijing to coordinate peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.
(Deutsche Welle Chinese website) It was only in the joint statement issued by China and Russia last Wednesday (March 22) that “all nuclear-weapon states should refrain from deploying nuclear weapons abroad and should withdraw nuclear weapons deployed abroad”, On Saturday (25th), Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that he would deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. Ukraine therefore demanded an immediate special meeting of the UN Security Council on the 27th. Putin’s move not only intensifies the confrontation between Russia and the West, but also may embarrass Beijing’s efforts to broker peace in the Russia-Ukraine war.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated on the 26th that if Russia really deploys strategic nuclear weapons in its neighboring countries, the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, nuclear disarmament framework, and even the entire international security system will be destroyed. Another provocation by a criminal regime”.
Ukraine called on the four permanent members of the UN Security Council other than Russia – the United States, the United Kingdom, France and China – to take “decisive measures” to stop this “nuclear blackmail” from Russia; Kiev also called on the G7 ( G7) and the European Union warned Belarus of the consequences of such a deployment.
Mykhailo Podoliak, an adviser to the Ukrainian president’s office, said on Twitter on the 26th that Putin made this decision out of fear of Russia’s defeat, and he once again proved himself guilty of violating the “Nuclear Arms Prohibition Treaty.”
NATO criticized Russia’s nuclear remarks on the 26th as “dangerous and irresponsible.”EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has urged Belarus not to hold nuclear weapons from Russia or face further sanctions.
Lithuania, a NATO member that borders Belarus, also said it would call for new sanctions on Moscow and Minsk. Lithuania has a very good relationship with Ukraine, and has continued to provide aid to Ukraine since the outbreak of the war.
US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby (John Kirby) said in an interview with the American broadcaster CBS on the 26th that the US has not detected any signs of Putin transferring any nuclear weapons: “We have not seen any indication that he (Putin) intends to Use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine.”
China’s “promoting peace” is riding a tiger
generalBeijingAs soon as the news of the planned nuclear weapons transfer came out, Beijing also faced widespread criticism for being friendly with Moscow. China’s “peace promotion” between Russia and Ukraine seemed very embarrassing.
According to the South China Morning Post, Zhou Chenming, a researcher at Beijing’s military science “Yuanwang Think Tank”, said that Russia’s deployment of nuclear weapons in Belarus will exacerbate tensions between Moscow and the West and make it more difficult to promote peace talks: “China will definitely continue to work hard to promote Negotiations, but PuBeijingObviously wanting to get more chips before then. “
generalBeijingTrump’s nuclear transfer plan runs counter to a statement he made with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week.In this regard, Zhou Chenming believes that although China-Russia relations are getting closer, the two countries may not agree on various strategic issues: “We (China), like Moscow, are worried that the United States may try to sabotage the Russia-Ukraine peace talks, and we also understand that the U.S.BeijingStrategic Dilemma Over Ukraine. But Russia is not as fully open to China as we hoped. “
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is in Beijing this week to meet with Xi Jinping; China’s recent proposal for a Russia-Ukraine peace deal is expected to be a key topic of discussion.French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen may visit China together next week to urge Beijing to help curb the pandemic.Beijingaggression against Ukraine,BeijingChina’s nuclear weapons transfer plan is expected to become a new hot topic in this series of diplomatic visits.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez poses with Zelensky during his visit to Kiev in February
Russia deploys tactical nuclear weapons abroad
According to the Russian state news agency TASS, theBeijingOn the 25th, he said that he had reached an agreement with Belarusian President Lukashenko (Alexander Lukashenko) to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus without violating the “nuclear non-proliferation regime.”
Tactical nuclear weapons are nuclear weapons with a short range and low explosive power. They are mainly used on friendly territory or in areas near friendly forces to avoid accidentally injuring one’s own people. The transfer, if realized, would be the first time Russia has deployed nuclear weapons abroad since the mid-1990s.
generalBeijingMoscow said it would build a storage facility for tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus by July 1, but would not hand over control of the weapons to Minsk. As for the specific time of the transfer of weapons, it was not stated.
generalBeijingHe claimed that Lukashenko had long proposed to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, and Russia readily accepted it, saying that the United States has been placing tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of its allies for decades, so this Russian plan “has nothing to do with it.” unusual”.
Belarusian President Lukashenko (file photo)
The U.S. Department of Defense said in a statement that there is no indication that Russia is preparing to use nuclear weapons, but the U.S. will continue to monitor the situation.
According to independent Russian observers, theBeijingResponding to Western arms shipments to Ukraine with a nuclear transfer program was a “panic response”.
Abbas Gallyamov, a political scientist at the American think tank “Foreign Policy Institute”, said that TrumpBeijingAlready disoriented, no longer strategic: “That’s why he’s vacillating.”
An observer at the US think tank “Institute of War” (ISW) said that Moscow’s plan has nothing to do with the risk of escalation to nuclear war, but only generalBeijingAttempts to exploit Western nuclear fears to weaken Ukrainian morale and Western aid operations: “PresidentBeijingA risk-averse man, he has repeatedly threatened to use nuclear weapons and has no intention of acting on them to break the resolve of the West. “
(comprehensive report)
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