Lithuania’s decision on nuke weapons poses threat to all of Europe — expert

Lithuania’s decision on nuke weapons poses threat to all of Europe — expert "This leads to nuclear anarchy and opens the door to military nuclear technologies for countries that have no experience operating such complex systems, thereby creating additional threats for Europe as a whole," Alexander Stepanov saidMOSCOW, October 6. /TASS/. Lifting the ban on the deployment of nuclear weapons on Lithuanian territory could lead to anarchy and poses a threat to all of Europe, Alexander Stepanov, a military expert at the Institute of Law and National Security at the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), told TASS. Earlier, the Seimas (parliament) of Lithuania voted to lift the ban on the deployment of nuclear weapons on the country’s territory. For the decision to take effect, a second vote is required in three months. During the plenary session, 106 deputies voted in favor of repealing the constitutional article prohibiting the deployment of nuclear weapons in the country, six abstained, and 18 voted against it. "This leads to nuclear anarchy and opens the door to military nuclear technologies for countries that have no experience operating such complex systems, thereby creating additional threats for Europe as a whole. And if such decisions are adopted, as well as if plans to deploy nuclear weapons are implemented in practice, I believe that the Russian Federation will take all necessary steps to preemptively target such infrastructure facilities," Stepanov said. The Seimas resolution provides for the removal of Article 137 from the constitution, which prohibits the deployment of weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons, on Lithuanian territory. The same article prohibits the presence of foreign military bases. Vilnius is currently seeking to have the United States establish such a base in the country. As Seimas Speaker Juozas Olekas noted, the ban on the deployment of such weapons distinguished Lithuania from other EU and NATO countries. 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