Poland Urges NATO Response To Russia Sending Nukes to Belarus

Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com,

Polish President Andrzej Duda said Monday that NATO must respond to Russia deploying nuclear weapons to Belarus.

"I absolutely believe that such a situation demands an unequivocal response from NATO," Duda said at a joint press conference in Paris with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, according to Bloomberg.

Duda didn’t specify what kind of response he had in mind, but he has previously said Poland wants to host US nuclear weapons.

In October 2022, Duda said he was discussing the idea with Washington:

"There is always a potential opportunity to participate in the nuclear sharing program," Duda told the newspaper Gazeta Polska. "We have spoken with American leaders about whether the United States is considering such a possibility. The issue is open."

When Russian President Vladimir Putin announced his plans to deploy nukes to Belarus, he compared the move to NATO’s nuclear sharing program, under which Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Turkey host US nuclear weapons.

For now, there’s no sign that the US is considering deploying nuclear weapons further east in Europe.

The State Department said last month that the Biden administration saw "no reason to adjust our strategic nuclear posture" in response to Russia sending nuclear weapons to Belarus.

Putin said last week that Russia will send tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus next month once the construction of storage facilities is completed, which is expected to happen by July 8.