The White House said on Thursday that it has seen reports that Russia has moved ahead with plans to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, but that Washington sees no reason to adjust its nuclear posture.

Moscow and Minsk sign deal on nuclear weapons deployment in Belarus

The defense ministers of Russia and Belarus on Thursday signed a document on the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, Russian…

see more

Speaking to a regular press briefing, White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said Russia’s move is an “example of making irresponsible and provocative choices.”

The White House also assured it will keep monitoring the situation, while the Department of State strongly condemned the nuclear arrangement between Russia and Germany.

Russia moved ahead on Thursday with a plan to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, whose leader said the warheads were already on the move, in the Kremlin’s first deployment of such bombs outside of Russia since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union.

Russia and Belarus, which have been close allies going as far as the Treaty on the Creation of Union State of Russia and Belarus in 1999, agreed earlier this year to deploy a portion of Moscow’s tactical nuclear arsenal in Belarus.