Poland, Latvia, Lithuania appeal to NATO Secretary General and partners on nuclear weapons transfer to Belarus

This is stated on the Lithuanian president's website. 

The heads of Poland, Latvia, and Lithuania emphasize that cooperation between Russia and Belarus undermines both the security of the region and the security of the Euro-Atlantic area. Thus, Russia uses the territory and resources of Belarus to wage a brutal and illegal aggressive war against Ukraine. According to them, this is evidence of closer military integration between the two countries.

"The latest manifestation of this is the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, which exacerbates the situation in the context of the war in Ukraine and poses a direct threat to the security of our society. This is another gross violation of the NATO-Russia Founding Act, which clearly shows that this document has lost its validity," the letter says.

The presidents also emphasized that the relocation of the Wagner PMC and its founder Yevgeny Prigozhin to Belarus would pose a threat to the political stability of that country. It also poses a threat to the potential loss of control over conventional and nuclear weapons. According to the heads of the three countries, the arrival of the Wagner soldiers in Belarus after the failed coup in Russia may become a new incentive for Belarus to resume its efforts to organize a new wave of mass migration and a humanitarian crisis on the borders with the European Union.

"On the eve of the NATO summit in Vilnius, we need solidarity and unity so that we can counter all threats with a 360-degree approach. Including the threats posed by the latest developments in Belarus. We need to show Russia that we see and understand these threats and that we are ready to take all possible measures to counter them," the letter says.

Duda, Levits and Nausėda noted that the Belarusian people need a clear signal from NATO that they value the vision of a democratic, stable and prosperous Belarus that is independent of Russia and its internal struggles. They therefore proposed five sequential actions that would not only increase Allied security, but also meet the democratic aspirations of the Belarusian people. These are:

• revision of nuclear deterrence and its adaptation to the new reality;
• incorporating conventional threats emanating from Belarus into NATO's military adaptation process;
• advance deployment of ammunition and weapons on NATO's eastern flank;
• Increase defense spending by more than 2% of GDP and align this process with the Alliance's priorities;
• increasing the Allies' resilience to hybrid threats.

On June 27, Polish President Andrzej Duda said that the presence of the Wagner PMC and Prigozhin in Belarus is an important security issue and requires a strong response from NATO.

On June 28, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that a clear message had been sent to Moscow and Minsk that NATO exists to defend every ally.