What did Belarus's nuclear status change mean?

What did it mean when Belarus said it was no longer a non-nuclear state? By 1 March 2022, the announcement was a day old. On 28 February 2022, Belarus confirmed that it had revoked that status, which would allow the country to host and develop its own nuclear weapons.

The change came out of a constitutional referendum held on 27 February 2022. President Alexander Lukashenko had ordered the vote in January 2022. Among the proposed amendments was one renouncing Belarus's nuclear-free zone status, which opened the way to hosting nuclear weapons. Other changes would have empowered the All-Belarusian People's Assembly, an extra-parliamentary body composed mostly of state officials.

The vote took place while Russia had amassed troops in both Russia and Belarus ahead of its invasion of Ukraine. The referendum was held several days after Russia began its military offensive into Ukraine.

Lukashenko also attached a condition to the change. He said that he could ask Russia to return nuclear missiles to Belarus if any nuclear weapons were transferred to Poland or Lithuania.

The announcement was therefore part of the wider regional picture on 1 March 2022: a constitutional change in Minsk, a conditional warning aimed at two neighbouring countries, and a war already under way in Ukraine.