The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, ratified an agreement on security guarantees with Belarus within the framework of the Union State, according to a recently published document. The pact was initially signed by Putin and his Belarusian counterpart, Alexander Lukashenko, on December 6, 2024, in Minsk.
The ratification of the agreement took place on February 18 by the State Duma of Russia, the lower house of Parliament, and on February 26 by the Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian Parliament. According to the treaty, both parties committed to take actions to support each other and employ all means at their disposal in accordance with international law to counter threats against either party or the Union State.
The agreement establishes the procedures for joint actions by the two countries in the event of a real threat to the sovereignty of either or both. Furthermore, the document includes clauses regarding the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus.
According to the agreement, Russian nuclear weapons may be used in response to the use of nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction against either party, or in the event of aggression against either of them using conventional weapons, if it poses a critical threat to sovereignty and territorial integrity.
