(Updated with comments from the Russian President)
MOSCOW, June 25 (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin told his Belarusian counterpart on Saturday that Moscow would supply Minsk with missile systems capable of carrying nuclear weapons, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
During a meeting with Vladimir Putin in Saint Petersburg, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko expressed concern about the “aggressive” and “confrontational” policies of his Lithuanian and Polish neighbors.
He asked the Russian president to help Belarus mount a “symmetrical response” to what he called NATO – led by the United States – nuclear flights near his country’s borders.
Vladimir Putin said that he did not see the need for a symmetrical response at the moment, but that the Belarusian Su-25 aircraft could if necessary be modernized in Russian factories.
“We are going to transfer to Belarus Iskander-M tactical missile systems, which can use both ballistic and cruise missiles, both in conventional and nuclear versions,” he also said, according to a summary of the meeting provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The Iskander-M is a mobile guided system named “SS-26 Stone” by NATO which replaced the Soviet “Scud”. Its two guided missiles have a range of up to 500 km and can carry conventional or nuclear warheads.
Tensions between Russia and the West have been at their height since Moscow sent troops to Ukraine four months ago, including allegations that NATO planned to admit Ukraine and use it as a platform. -shape to threaten Russia.
Last week, Lithuania drew the ire of Moscow by blocking the transit of goods subject to European sanctions passing through its territory from Russia, via Belarus, to the Russian Baltic enclave of Kaliningrad.
(Reuters report, French version Benjamin Mallet)