Putin and Lukashenko oversee joint Russian-Belarusian nuclear exercise

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Thursday took part via video conference in a joint Russian-Belarusian nuclear forces exercise, marking the first time the two leaders have directly participated in such a training event.

Opening the meeting held via video link and broadcast live on the Kremlin's website, Putin stressed that the use of nuclear weapons remains “an extreme and exceptional measure for ensuring the national security” of the two countries.

“Today, as part of the exercises, we are conducting the first joint training of the armies of Russia and Belarus on managing strategic and tactical nuclear forces,” he said.

At the same time, the Russian leaders said the Russian-Belarusian nuclear triad must continue to serve as “a reliable guarantor of the sovereignty of the Union State of Russia and Belarus” amid rising global tensions and emerging threats.

According to Putin, the drills are aimed at practicing coordination and interaction between military officials in the event of nuclear weapons use, including weapons deployed on the territory of Belarus.

He added that the exercises would also include practical launches of ballistic and cruise missiles.

For his part, Lukashenko said the joint drill is part of regular military coordination between the two countries, noting that the general staffs and defense ministries of Belarus and Russia conduct similar exercises on a quarterly basis.

“We absolutely threaten no one. But we have such weapons, and we are ready in every possible way to defend our common Fatherland from Brest to Vladivostok,” he said.

The Belarusian leader stressed that the exercises were defensive in nature and represented “the only demonstration from our side,” adding that countries possessing such capabilities “must know how to use them.”

He also said Belarus and Russia were engaged in “a lawful matter” aimed at protecting the lives of their citizens.

The remarks came as Russia and Belarus conducted joint drills involving nuclear-capable forces between May 19 and 21, with Moscow earlier describing the exercises as part of military preparedness measures carried out under conditions “of a potential threat of aggression.”

In a separate statement, the Russian Defense Ministry said Moscow and Minsk carried out launches of intercontinental, hypersonic and air-launched cruise missiles during the second stage of nuclear forces exercises.

According to the ministry, the crew of a nuclear-powered submarine launched a Sineva intercontinental ballistic missile from a submerged position as part of the drills.

The Russian military also conducted a launch of a Yars intercontinental ballistic missile from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome toward a testing range in Russia’s Kamchatka region.

In Belarus, a combat crew of the Belarusian armed forces carried out a practical launch of a ballistic missile from an Iskander-M missile system at the Kapustin Yar testing range, the ministry said.

The exercises also involved Tu-95MS strategic bombers, which launched hypersonic air-launched cruise missiles, while a MiG-31 aircraft carried out a launch of a Kinzhal hypersonic missile, according to the statement.