VLADIMIR Putin’s closest ally has issued his most chilling nuclear war threat yet.
Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko, often dubbed “Europe’s last dictator”, declared that America’s plans to send long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine could tip the world into nuclear war.
Alexander Lukashenko warned that US Tomahawk missile supplies to Ukraine could lead to nuclear warAP
The Belarusian leader shakes hands with Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin during a meeting in SeptemberAFP
Tomahawk missiles have a range of 2,500km and weigh almost half a ton
His words were a stark reminder of just how close the Kremlin’s war could come to unleashing catastrophe if Washington’s new strategy goes ahead.
The warning comes as Donald Trump, buoyed by a wave of global praise for brokering peace in the Middle East, is now pivoting his attention to what he calls the “unfinished business” of Ukraine.
After celebrating a ceasefire deal that ended the Gaza war and secured the release of 20 Israeli hostages, the US president told Israel’s parliament: “It would be great if we could make a peace deal with [Iran]… First, we have to get Russia done. Let’s focus on Russia first.”
Trump, who boasts of having ended eight conflicts since taking office in January, now wants to replicate that success in Europe.
But unlike his Middle East breakthrough, he is reaching for harder tools.
He is weighing the supply of Tomahawk cruise missiles to Kyiv — a move he admits would mark a “new step of aggression” and one that Moscow warns could sever relations entirely.
“I might say, look, if this war’s not going to get settled, I’m going to send them Tomahawks,” Trump said en route to Israel.
“I might have to speak to Russia, to be honest with you, about Tomahawks.
“Do they want to have Tomahawks going in their direction? I don’t think so.”
The White House has already stepped up intelligence-sharing with Ukrainian forces, helping them target Russian energy infrastructure in a bid to choke the Kremlin’s war machine.
And later this week, Trump will host Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House to discuss how Tomahawks could “bring Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table”, according to the Ukrainian president.
Zelensky said: “The main topics will be air defence and our long-range capabilities, to maintain pressure on Russia.”
Kyiv sees the 1,500-mile-range missile as a potential gamechanger — one capable of crippling Russian supply lines and smashing missile and drone factories far behind enemy lines.
Even the limited stock Washington could provide, estimated at just 20–50 missiles, could complement Ukraine’s existing strike arsenal in “large complex salvos”, analysts say.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky meets Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on August 18, 2025AFP
The missiles are normally launched from ships and submarinesHandout – Getty
For Zelensky, Trump’s Gaza success has ignited fresh hope that his country’s agony might also end.
“Now, as the war in the Middle East comes to an end, it is important not to lose the momentum for advancing peace,” he said.
“The war in Europe can also be brought to an end, and for that, the leadership of both the United States and other partners is of utmost importance.”
Zelensky continued: “Undoubtedly, the right actions by the United States can also help bring an end to Russia’s war against Ukraine. We have a corresponding vision for this.”
That vision will be put to the test when Zelensky arrives in Washington on Friday with a list of Russian military targets he wants hit if the missiles are approved.
Kyiv hopes the added pressure could finally force Putin — whose economy is faltering under the strain of sanctions and war — to the table.
But Moscow’s reaction has been incendiary.
Will Trump make peace?
DONALD Trump has staked his presidency on the promise of “peace through strength” — and after brokering a ceasefire in Gaza, he’s turning that stride toward Europe’s bloodiest war.
But ending Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine will be a far tougher test.
Unlike Hamas, Vladimir Putin shows no sign of compromise, and Trump admits he’s running out of leverage.
His threat to arm Kyiv with Tomahawk missiles is designed to force Moscow to the table.
But it could just as easily harden Putin’s resolve and push the world closer to catastrophe.
If Trump pulls it off, he’ll go down as the man who ended two wars in a year.
If he fails, Ukraine’s agony will grind on — and the spectre of nuclear confrontation will loom larger than ever.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warned that the Tomahawks were of “extreme concern” and that Russia “would not be able to tell if the missiles were carrying nuclear warheads” if launched at its territory.
“Tensions are escalating from all sides,” he said.
Putin crony and former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev also lashed out at the US leader, mocking him as a “star-spangled uncle” and warning the Tomahawk plan “could end badly for everyone – and first of all, for Trump himself.”
Medvedev, now deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, claimed on Telegram that Moscow could not tell the difference between conventional and nuclear Tomahawks once they were launched.
“It has been said a hundred times in a way even understandable to the star-spangled uncle that it is impossible to distinguish nuclear Tomahawks from conventional ones in flight,” he said.
“Their launch will not be carried out by….Kyiv, but by the USA,” said Medvedev, implying they will need American input into targeting and launching.
“Read: Trump. How to respond to Russia? Exactly!”
Putin himself has remained silent, perhaps hoping he can still persuade Trump to back down.
Rescue workers put out a fire of a hospital damaged by a Russian strike in Kharkiv, UkraineAP
A burning residential building following an air attack in the frontline town of Kostyantynivka, Donetsk regionAFP Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
