Russia confirms first tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus

By Stefan J. Bos

Russian President Putin confirmed that Moscow had deployed "the first batch" of Russian tactical nuclear weapons in neighboring Belarus.

Speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, he warned that more atomic weapons would arrive soon. "It happened. The first nuclear warheads were delivered to the territory of Belarus," he told delegates at Russia's main economic forum in St. Petersburg.

"But only the first, this is the first part. We will complete this work in its entirety before the end of the summer, before the end of the year."

Putin said they would be used in the event of what he called a threat to "the existence of the Russian state."

He also warned NATO defense ministers meeting in Brussels, Belgium, that his country has more nuclear weapons than the Western military alliance.

There are Western concerns that Putin's nuclear rhetoric could further escalate the war as Moscow has made clear it considers regions it occupied in Ukraine as part of Russia.

But Kyiv says it wants to recapture all territory taken by Moscow.

"Active moves"

On Saturday, Ukraine's deputy defense minister Hanna Maliar confirmed troops were "engaged in active moves" to advance the Ukrainian counteroffensive in the country's south.

Kyiv claims its forces around the devastated city of Bakhmut, captured by Russia last month, are pushing Russian troops out from the outskirts of the town.

Russia has not officially acknowledged Ukrainian advances and said it had inflicted heavy losses on Ukrainian troops over the past 24 hours.

Visit by African leaders

These clashes continued after African leaders were in Ukraine on a self-declared peace mission, where they met President Volodymyr Zelensky. The group, led by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, traveled by train from Poland to Kyiv.

Carrying candles for the victims, South Africa|s president and officials from Senegal, Egypt, Zambia, and Comoros later toured the town of Bucha, where authorities say the biggest massacres of civilians by Russian forces occurred in the Ukraine war.    

The leaders also viewed a photo exhibit inside Bucha's white-washed St. Andrew's Church, showing gruesome images of bodies lying in the streets in March last year after Ukrainian forces drove out Russian troops.

Ukraine said an air raid at the start of the African leader's visit to Ukraine showed Russian President Putin wanted "more war." And officials claimed Ukraine's military shot down Russian missiles fired at Kyiv as the delegates arrived.

The seven African leaders were to head to Russia on Saturday. But with battles raging, it remained unclear whether they would be able to bring peace closer for Europe's bloodiest armed conflict in years.