Ukraine reveals three aims behind Russia's nuclear exercises with Belarus
Photo: Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko (Getty Images)
Russia is keeping the Belarusian army under its control. The Kremlin may use joint nuclear exercises primarily to intimidate the European Union, stated the head of the Center for Countering Disinformation, Andriy Kovalenko, in a comment to RBC-Ukraine.
The aggressor portrays itself as a victim
Kovalenko noted that Russia is using nuclear weapons in its information strategy as a potential offensive tool.
"At the same time, Russia distorts reality by portraying these actions as forced defensive measures. They are trying to turn themselves from an aggressor into a victim, and this applies to everything," he added.
Russia controls Belarus’s military
According to him, through nuclear drills, Russian President Vladimir Putin is effectively demonstrating that Belarus is his sphere of control, despite the efforts of President Alexander Lukashenko to pursue a multi-vector foreign policy.
Kovalenko stated that Russia fully controls the Belarusian army through its own personnel. In particular, Belarusian Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin is considered a Russian-aligned figure, having graduated from the Ussuriysk Suvorov Military School and the Frunze Omsk Higher Combined Arms Command School.
Meanwhile, Belarusian Security Council Secretary Alexander Volfovich is a graduate of the Moscow Higher Combined Arms Command School. He is described as an associate of the Russian Chief of the General Staff, Valery Gerasimov, and of Putin's aide, Nikolai Patrushev.
The purpose of nuclear drills
Kovalenko emphasized that during the nuclear exercises, the Kremlin is effectively using the Belarusian army as part of a hybrid operation aimed at intimidating EU countries with the threat of a nuclear strike.
According to the head of the Center for Countering Disinformation, the goals of this operation are:
- spreading fear within EU countries
- reducing public support for current political elites in the EU
- increasing support for political forces that favor closer relations with Russia
"As for Ukraine, this operation is largely ineffective for our society," he stressed.
On May 18, it became known that Belarus and Russia had begun joint exercises involving the combat use of nuclear weapons.
More details about Moscow and Minsk’s new provocations are available in the RBC-Ukraine report.
