MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin confirmed on Friday Russia had sent nuclear arms to its ally Belarus, which borders Ukraine.

“The first nuclear warheads were delivered to the territory of Belarus... This is the first part,” Putin told an annual economic forum, where media groups of other countries Russia deems “unfriendly” were not accredited.

The Russian leader had announced the plans to send tactical nuclear weapons — less powerful than strategic ones — in March.

“By the end of summer, the end of the year, we will complete the process,” of transferring tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus, Putin said.

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Tactical nuclear arms are battlefield weapons that, while devastating, have a smaller yield compared to long-range strategic weapons.

Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has allowed his territory, which borders Ukraine as well as EU and Nato members Poland and Lithuania, to serve as a launch pad for Russia’s Ukraine offensive.

Putin’s announcement had spurred fears of nuclear conflict, but experts and governments said it was unlikely it would change the course of the conflict.

Putin said the weapons were meant as deterrence to “those who are thinking of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia”. Belarusian troops began training on nuclear-capable Russian missile systems in April.

African mission

At least two explosions rocked Kyiv on Friday and air raid sirens blared as African leaders began a peace mission, hoping to mediate between Ukraine and Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said after meeting African leaders in Kyiv that peace talks with Russia would be possible only after Moscow withdraws its forces from occupied territory, the Interfax Ukraine news agency reported.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa called on Ukraine and Russia to de-escalate their conflict. “This war must be settled and there should be peace through negotiations,” he told reporters after talks with Zelensky.

“We argue that there must be de-escalation on both sides”, he said.

The peace delegation, including leaders from South Africa, Senegal, Zambia, the Comoros and Egypt, will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg on Saturday (today).

A journalist in central Kyiv heard two explosions. Mayor Vitali Klitschko also reported explosions in the central Podil district. Another correspondent saw the smoke trail of two missiles in the sky above the capital. It was not clear if those missiles had been fired by Russia or Ukrainian air defences.

A television crew saw the leaders arriving in Kyiv in a convoy of cars and entering a hotel to use its air-raid shelter. The all-clear was later issued for Kyiv, and the South African presidency tweeted that the mission was “proceeding well and as planned”.

Ukraine’s air force said it had downed six “Kinzhal” ballistic missiles, six cruise missiles and two drones.

Published in Dawn, June 17th, 2023