Polonez with nuclear warhead: Belarus and Russia announce joint developments

The Belarusian Polonez operational-tactical missile system could potentially be equipped with a nuclear warhead. Russian specialists are working on the project, according to the Belarusian side.

The statement was made by Gennady Lepeshko, head of the national security commission of Belarus’s House of Representatives, in comments to the pro-Russian outlet Sputnik Belarus, Militarnyi reported.

According to him, during the joint Zapad exercises the sides had allegedly already practised algorithms for the use of nuclear weapons.

This concerns aviation and missile platforms that are being considered as potential carriers of nuclear warheads. Lepeshko also confirmed that the possibility of using nuclear weapons directly from the Polonez missile system was being discussed.

Polonez is a Belarusian adaptation of the Chinese GATSS multifunctional missile system, mounted on an MZKT-7930 chassis. The system was first demonstrated in 2015 and was taken into service in 2016. The complex is capable of using missiles with a range of up to 300 kilometres and is equipped with an inertial guidance system with GPS correction.

Belarusian authorities have previously made repeated high-profile statements about the Polonez system. In 2022, president Alexander Lukashenko openly threatened missile strikes on Kyiv, and in 2023 he said Belarus was moving to Russian missile technologies.

Alongside Polonez, Belarus’s military has fielded Russia’s Iskander-M and Iskander-K operational-tactical missile systems since 2023. Nuclear warheads with yields of up to 50 kilotons already exist in Russia for these systems, likely referring to what officials described as rehearsing nuclear scenarios during the drills.

Cooperation between Minsk and Moscow in missile and nuclear technologies is thus continuing to deepen, prompting concern in the region and across Europe.