Statement By Head Of Delegation Of The Republic Of Belarus In Negotiations On Nuclear Disarmament

Andrei Sannikov is speaking about Putin and Lukashenko’s plans on nuclear weapons deployment In Belarus.

Andrei Sannikov, the leader of the European Belarus civil campaign, former Deputy Foreign Minister of Belarus, former head of the delegation of the Republic of Belarus at the talks on nuclear disarmament issued a statement in connection with Putin and Lukashenko's plans to deploy nuclear weapons in Belarus.

The website Charter97.org publishes the text of the statement:

I, Andrei Sannikov, headed the Belarusian delegation on disarmament issues, including nuclear disarmament, at the time when the Republic of Belarus assumed all the current obligations on these issues, declare that Putin-Lukashenko’s plans to deploy nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus are mortally dangerous for the whole world.

Issues concerning the two largest arsenals of deadly nuclear weapons, the USSR and the USA, were settled in the early 1990s through tense and difficult negotiations between the delegations of Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine and the USA.

As a result of the agreements reached, ratified by the Supreme Council of the Republic of Belarus and signed by the head of state Stanislau Shushkevich, Belarus became the first state in the world to voluntarily renounce the possibility of possessing nuclear weapons. This contribution of Belarus to the strengthening of international peace and security was highly appreciated by the international community.

Having renounced nuclear weapons, Belarus acceded to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) as a non-nuclear party and stipulated in its 1994 Constitution that it “aims to make its territory a nuclear-free zone”.

These obligations are the main existing obligations of the Republic of Belarus in relation to nuclear weapons. They were adopted in a legitimate democratic way, in accordance with international law and democratic procedures.

The withdrawal of the “nuclear-free provision” as a result of the illegal and falsified “referendum” on February 27, 2022, was carried out contrary to all norms of domestic and international law.

Any attempts to change the non-nuclear status of the Republic of Belarus must be considered an act of aggression against the independent state.

Vladimir Putin's statements about the deployment of nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus with the consent of Alexander Lukashenko grossly violate all norms of international law and any actions in this direction must be stopped in the most decisive way.

Vladimir Putin is a war criminal whose arrest warrant was issued by the International Criminal Court. Alexander Lukashenko, according to the Report of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, is suspected of crimes against humanity.

Two international pariahs are planning to place nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus, near the borders of the European Union, thereby threatening not only the civilian population of Belarus, but the whole of Europe.

These criminal plans must be stopped in the most decisive way, otherwise Europe will become a target for a nuclear strike by Russian missiles from the territory of Belarus.

The international community has every opportunity to stop the crazy plans of the Kremlin and Lukashenko.

The UN Security Council must urgently be convened to address the threats to international security posed by the two unpredictable dictators, Putin and Lukashenko.

Urgent and tough decisions must be taken at the level of the UN Security Council and NATO to prevent a nuclear war that threatens to destroy all of humanity. These decisions should include the declaration of Belarus a zone of international responsibility, guaranteed by the UN peacekeeping forces to prevent the violation of the nuclear non-proliferation regime by the two international criminals.

The international community has no right to confine itself to expressing concern when maniacs threaten to destroy humanity.

It is time to take care of international peace not in words, but in deeds, in the name of peace and security.