Ukraine's government on Sunday, called for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council to counter what it is called the Kremlin's nuclear blackmail after Russian president Vladimir Putin revealed plans to station tactical atomic weapons in Belarus. One Ukrainian official said that Russia has taken Belarus as a nuclear hostage, but Moscow said it was making the move in response to the west's increasing military support for Ukraine. Putin announced the plan in a television interview that aired on Saturday, saying it was triggered by a UK decision this past week to provide Ukraine with armor piercing rounds containing depleted uranium, Putin argued that by deploying its tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, Russia was following the lead of the United States. He noted that Washington has nuclear weapons based in Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and turkey. Russia has stored its weapons at dedicated depots on its own territory and moving part of the arsenal to a storage facility in Belarus would effectively up the ante in the Ukrainian conflict in response, Ukraine's foreign ministry condemned the move, stating that the world must be united against someone who endangers the future of human civilization. I'm Sarah Napa