Politics Military maneuvers with Belarus: Russia tests its nuclear arsenal
At the end of a large-scale maneuver, Russia tested an entire arsenal of nuclear-tipped missiles. An intercontinental nuclear missile of the Jars type was fired from northern Russia at a target area on the Kamchatka peninsula in the Far East, according to the Ministry of Defense in Moscow.
21.05.2026, 18:41
21.05.2026, 18:42
SDA
According to the Kremlin, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his ally Alexander Lukashenko from Belarus watched the maneuver on screen. The triad of land, sea and air-based nuclear weapons will always serve as a "guarantor of the sovereignty of the union of Russia and Belarus", Putin said. The weapons would only be used for defense. Russia would renew its arsenal, but would not allow itself to become embroiled in an arms race.
Missile launches from nuclear submarines
According to the military, nuclear-powered Russian submarines fired missiles of the ultra-modern Zirkon and Sinewa types. MiG-31 fighter jets fired Kinschal hypersonic missiles and Tu-95 long-range bombers fired other missiles. According to the report, units of the Belarusian army launched an Iskander-M ballistic missile at the Kapustin Yar test site in southern Russia.
Lukashenko reportedly said that Belarus and Russia were not threatening anyone, but were prepared to defend their common homeland from Brest to Vladivostok. The armed forces of both countries had been practicing the use of nuclear weapons since Tuesday. Russia has stationed its latest medium-range missile, the Oreshnik, in Belarus. It is thus taking Belarus under its nuclear umbrella, but also increasing its control over the neighboring country.
Nuclear triad exercises are quite common. This time, the maneuver took place at a time of heightened tensions between the European states and Russia. Moscow demonstratively showed off its military might after the war against Ukraine became bogged down and these weaknesses were also evident during the reduced Victory Day parade on 9 May.
