Germany accuses Putin of attempted nuclear intimidation

The German Foreign Ministry has condemned Russian President Vladimir Putin’s statement about the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus.

The ministry, following the Russian president's announcement on March 25 night, declared a "further attempt at nuclear intimidation" by Russia, according to the newspaper Bild.

The diplomatic office criticised Putin's argument that the US was allegedly deploying its nuclear weapons in a number of European countries.

"The comparison made by President Putin on the distribution of NATO nuclear forces is misleading and cannot be used to justify the step announced by Russia," the German Foreign Ministry noted.

Moreover, Belarus has pledged at the international level to be free from nuclear weapons in several declarations, added in Berlin.

Putin argued that Russia is not transferring nuclear weapons to Belarus, but is stationing its weapons on its territory.