Lukashenko stated that he possesses "several dozen" nuclear missiles.

Belarussian dictator Alexander Lukashenko announced the presence of several dozen nuclear warheads in the republic, as reported by "BelTA".

"I brought nuclear warheads here. Not just a few. Many write: 'Oh, that's a joke, no one brought anything in.' They were brought in. And the fact that they say it's a joke means they missed it. They didn't even notice how we brought them here," he stated.

"If nuclear weapons are used, it carries great responsibility. At least since Hiroshima and Nagasaki, no one has pressed the nuclear weapon button. The most powerful major states, not to mention Belarus," Lukashenko emphasized.

"But I warned all my enemies, 'friends,' and opponents: if you step on the state border line, the response will be immediate. I won't care whether it's nuclear weapons or something else. We agreed on this with the Russians even before they returned nuclear weapons to us. This is not the same weapon we gave them. That was strategic weaponry. This is tactical nuclear weaponry. Although, it’s probably five times more powerful than this 'Oreshnik'," Lukashenko declared.

He also stated that he could place strategic nuclear missile systems, preserved from Soviet times, on the sites for the "Oreshnik" missile complexes, which he requested from Putin.

"We have about thirty such sites. We will choose them, as there needs to be a minimum distance to the target objects. We will deploy and aim," Lukashenko said.

He added that Belarus will determine the targets for strikes itself but will "press the button" together with Russia.

Russia and Belarus agreed to deploy tactical nuclear weapons (TNW) on Belarusian territory in March 2023. The first nuclear warheads arrived in Belarus in June of the same year.

At the end of November, Russia struck Ukraine with a non-nuclear equipped medium-range hypersonic ballistic missile "Oreshnik". After that, Lukashenko requested to deploy this weapon in Belarus. Putin agreed, stating that the deployment of "Oreshnik" in Belarus could begin in the second half of the following year.