"Lukashenko Confirms Russian Tactical Nukes Already Being Transferred To Belarus
Despite urgent warnings from US and Western allies, Moscow is moving forward with plans to station tactical nuclear weapons in neighboring Belarus. The two longtime allies which form what they call a 'union state' signed a deal Thursday to formalize deployment of Russian nukes on Belarusian soil."
Tell me what what difference does nukes in Belarus make?
The Russian's have always had the ability to deploy tactical nuclear weapons from Russia itself.
This is just the same nuclear sabre rattling Russia has been doing since the start of the war. Like when they threatened to put nuclear weapons into the Baltic in response to Sweden and Finland joining NATO. The west was like "so what?" we know you already have nukes there anyway. Russian does this for one reason to try to scare the west off from supporting Ukraine and get them to think like you do, because they know as long as the west continues to support Ukraine they can't win by conventional military means.
So here is my question to all you "Ukraine to the last man" people.That's disingenuous representation of people who support Ukraine's right to resist aggression. The people supporting Ukraine's right to resist did not cause this war nor is it forcing the Ukrainian's to fight, the Ukrainan's themselves have overwhelming chosen to do so. It also ignores history in that virtually no conflict has ever resulted in an entire nationality being completely wiped out and the current reality that the Russian's have proven themselves military incapable of doing so.
When the nukes start going off, will it then be time to force negotiations?
As you sit there in your chair...WHAT IS YOUR PLAN ONCE YOU HEAR THE NEWS THAT NUCLEAR WEAPONS ARE BEING USED!!!???
"They wont dare use nukes..." I hear you say.
Perhaps it's time to decide whether you actually think Putin is a madman or whether you're just saying that to gain some virtue points.
Because if you actually believe that he is an evil madman...then you should probably be building a bunker right now.
When?...easy there Mystic Meg.
If and that's a big if the Russian's use a tactical nuclear weapon there is likely two scenarios to occur. Scenario 1, the West back's down in its support of Ukraine deeming the risk of escalation too much. Ukraine fights on for as long as it can without support but eventually is forced to negotiate a peace under terms favourable to Russia. I don't think this is likely.
Scenario 2 More probable, NATO will likely enter the war, but not respond with nukes of its own. It would likely give Russia an ultimatum, leave Ukraine (Crimea may or may not be included) or every Russian military unit in Ukraine will be annihilated by conventional military means. There is also a strong possibility that Russia using nukes would be too much even for China and they would cut ties with Russia, increasing Russia's diplomatic and economic isolation.
At this point Putin either has to pull his forces out or see they being annihilated. His only recourse at this point would be escalate to a nuclear exchange with NATO but that would mean the total destruction of Russia. To get to that point you have to assume that Putin would be willing for that to happen and that if he was no would step in and stop him.
It's far less risky for Putin to just keep doing what he's currently doing. Continue with the war of attrition, hope the west gets fed up of supporting Ukraine at some point in the future and stops supplying them with military aid which should allow Russia to win via conventional military means. while every now and then rattle the nuclear sabre to try to spook the west.
Putin could very well be described as evil, but's not mad. He just made a a major miscalculation with this war.
If the west does gives into nuclear blackmail over Ukraine what road will that led us down. Within a few years Putin or his successor is making demands NATO withdraws to its 1997 boarders and its military starts rolling into the Baltic and other Eastern Europe states. China invades Taiwan and threatens nuclear retaliation against anyone who aids Taiwan. China then starts militarily enforcing its claims over the entirety of the south China sea and threatens nuclear war against anyone who tries to contest that? And when it becomes known that nuclear blackmail works what will that do for nuclear proliferation around the world. Every tin pot dictator on the planet will want his own nuclear arsenal.