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Russia's president Vladimir Putin has said it will station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. But the US said it did not believe Russia was preparing to use such weapons after the announcement.

What does the decision to store tactical nuclear weapons tells us about the closeness between Moscow and its neighbouring ally Belarus?

Dr. Eleanor Bindman specialises in Russian and eastern European politics at Manchester Metropolitan University.

She explained what a tactical nuclear weapon is and what the announcement tells us about Russia's relationship with its sphere in influence to Newshour's Julian Marshall.

(Photo shows Russias president Vladimir Putin and the Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko shaking hands at a recent meeting. Credit: Vladimir Astapkovich/EPA)