The Russian leadership has responded "even to the biggest request from Belarus" by deploying its tactical nuclear warheads in the neighboring country, Lukashenko was quoted as saying by a state-run news agency.
"Nuclear weapons are about security … God forbid we have to use this weapon. I still hope that this will not happen … We will ensure our security with the help of our friends," the president told residents of the Kamianets district in the Brest region of Western Belarus.
Lukashenko added that Russia's nuclear weapons, along with Belarus' only nuclear power plant, were a security factor for Minsk.
"We have a nuclear power plant. This, I must tell you, is a very strong safety factor: if it explodes … all will be affected. Therefore, you have to be very careful with it. We see what is happening with the nuclear reactors in Ukraine," Lukashenko stated.
Belarus is "not rattling its sabers" but is preparing to be able to defend itself at any moment, the president said, adding that he does not want Belarusians to go to war.
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced in mid-June that Moscow had transferred the first batch of the nuclear warheads to Belarus and would complete the transfer of tactical nuclear weapons by the end of the year. Putin stated the deployment was an element of deterrence and a signal to those thinking of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia.