Russia could use nuclear weapons in case of aggression against Belarus

MOSCOW

Russian nuclear weapons could be used in response to aggression against Russia or Belarus if their sovereignty or territorial integrity is threatened, according to a security agreement between the two countries, which President Vladimir Putin submitted on Wednesday to the parliament for ratification.

According to the treaty, Russia's nuclear weapons can be deployed in response to the use of nuclear or other weapons of mass destruction against Russia or Belarus, read the document published on the website of the Russian lower chamber of parliament, the State Duma.

Their use is also permitted in the event of conventional armed aggression against either country if it poses a critical threat to its sovereignty or territorial integrity.

Last November, Putin signed a decree approving the country's updated nuclear doctrine, the Basic Principles of State Policy of the Russian Federation on Nuclear Deterrence.

The document outlines conditions for the use of nuclear weapons, threats deemed serious enough for use, the order in which the plan for the use of nuclear weapons is activated, decision-makers, actions to keep nuclear forces in combat readiness, and policy for "nuclear deterrence"— a plan for preventing nuclear attacks by ensuring that any nuclear aggression results in devastating retaliation.

While the principle of nuclear weapons as a last resort for protecting Russia's sovereignty remains unchanged, the criteria for their use have been revised.

The signing of the decree enabling the new version of the nuclear doctrine coincided with the US authorizing Ukraine to use Western-made weapons to strike deep inside Russian territory, though Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stressed that the publication of the doctrine was already "planned."