Lukashenko threatens the use of nuclear weapons and World War III

The autocratic ruler of the former Soviet republic of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, has accused NATO of planning an attack on his country and threatened to use nuclear weapons.

“An attack on Belarus means World War III,” the Belarusian president said during an appearance before students in Minsk, according to the state news agency BelTA.

Both Belarus and its close ally Russia would use nuclear weapons in such an event, he said. Lukashenko thanked Russian President Vladimir Putin for the recent change in Russian nuclear doctrine.

During his speech at the State University of Informatics and Radioelectronics, Lukashenko claimed that NATO had concrete plans to attack Belarus.

“Americans and Poles have already positioned themselves along the border, especially on the Polish one. We know that the Polish leadership is already rubbing its hands,” he said.

Belarus is prepared for the event and will respond immediately, he said. Since NATO could counter the use of nuclear weapons with its own nuclear strikes, Russia would use its entire arsenal. Lukashenko said the West was not ready for such an escalation.

Belarus is not itself a nuclear power; However, tactical nuclear weapons from Russia have been stationed on its territory since the end of 2023. In April, Lukashenko spoke of several dozen nuclear warheads.

Belarus has also received Russian Iskander missiles that can carry nuclear warheads. Su-25 fighter jets were also converted into carrier weapons.

While Moscow claims command of the nuclear weapons stationed in Belarus, Lukashenko has already incorporated the use of nuclear weapons into his country's military doctrine.

On Wednesday, Putin said Russia had adjusted its military doctrine due to the international security situation. Russia's list of military threats against which nuclear weapons can be used as a deterrent has been expanded, Putin said during a meeting of the National Security Council in Moscow.

The change is seen as a response to the debate over granting Ukraine large-scale weapons to defend against Russia's war.

The new doctrine increases the risk, especially for Western nuclear powers such as the USA and France, of becoming the target of a Russian counterattack if they support non-nuclear countries such as Ukraine in an aggression against Russia.