Western intel vigilant for traces of Wagner and nuclear warheads in Belarus
CNN reported. As per a report by CNN, a military camp has reportedly emerged near Minsk following the southern Russia uprising, there is no apparent indication of a large-scale influx of Wagner troops into Belarus. “It could happen that Wagner PMC decides not to relocate here," Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Thursday.
Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin is not even in Belarus, Lukashenko told CNN – he is in Russia, Lukashenko claimed. Despite Russian President Vladimir Putin's statement last month about the readiness of Belarusian facilities to store tactical nuclear weapons by July 7, Western officials have not observed any indications of such preparations. According to officials, Belarus currently lacks the necessary infrastructure to accommodate these weapons, and it is expected to take several months, or possibly even longer, before the country can technically achieve this capability.
Satellite imagery currently accessible has failed to reveal any indications of the customary preparations and security measures associated with a Russian nuclear facility. Russia possesses the largest stockpile of nuclear weapons globally, consisting of 4,477 deployed and reserve nuclear warheads, approximately 1,900 of which are tactical nuclear weapons, as reported by the Federation of American Scientists. The exact number of nuclear weapons Russia may plan to deploy in Belarus remains uncertain.
“We are in this fog of Russian mirrors. What actions will Putin take? We don’t know," said Max Bergmann, the director of Russian and European studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “Putin does not need tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus to use those weapons," Bergmann added.
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