Possible weapons of mass destruction in Lithuania will be targeted, Russia has said<\/p>\n
Russia will respond to any deployment in Lithuania of nuclear weapons aimed at the country by adjusting its own posture accordingly, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has warned.
\nThe Baltic NATO state is currently moving to abolish a constitutional ban on hosting weapons of mass destruction, which President Gitanas Nauseda described as outdated in July. Speaking to Russian TV on Friday, Peskov said Vilnius would cause another rise in tensions with the proposed move.
\n\u201cIf you host nuclear weapons, they are aimed at somebody. Those won\u2019t be aimed to the west. They will be aimed to the east, i.e. at us,\u201d Peskov said. Consequently, \u201cour nuclear weapons will be aimed at\u201d the hosting nation.
\nLithuanian media has described the proposed constitutional reform, which could be approved as soon as this winter, as creating a legal framework for a proposed EU nuclear-sharing scheme. France, the only nuclear power in the economic bloc, is considering moving some of its weapons to other member states.<\/p>\n
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Lowering the nuclear threshold: Is NATO\u2019s new \u2018deterrence\u2019 initiative a path to disaster?<\/p>\n
NATO already has a nuclear-sharing arrangement under which US nuclear bombs are stored in non-nuclear countries, including Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, T\u00fcrkiye, and the UK.
\nEarlier this week, a Lithuanian parliamentary committee on legal affairs approved a proposal to amend the constitution, with two MPs voting against. The opposition argued that the change should be put to a referendum, while Nauseda\u2019s government said approval by parliament is sufficient. Constitutional amendments in Lithuania require two separate votes in parliament at least three months apart.
\nThe provision outlawing weapons of mass destruction also bans foreign military bases and was included in the basic law to safeguard the post-Soviet republic\u2019s neutrality. Lithuania joined NATO in 2004 along with Latvia and Estonia. Germany is currently working to deploy a heavy tank brigade in the country.<\/p>\n
READ MORE: Germany struggles to find volunteers to confront Russia \u2013 media<\/p>\n
Russia has described NATO\u2019s expansion in Europe as a key cause of current tensions with the US-led military bloc. Moscow views the forward deployment of nuclear-capable weapons near Russia\u2019s borders as a major risk because it significantly reduces the time available to determine whether a detected attack is a false alarm or an actual strike warranting nuclear retaliation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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