The Existence Of Belarus: A Historical Perspective

Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. Throughout history, the territory that is now Belarus has been occupied by various regional powers, including Kievan Rus', the Principality of Polotsk, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and the Russian Empire. After the Russian Revolution in 1917, different states arose, competing for legitimacy amid the Civil War, ultimately resulting in the formation of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, which became a founding constituent republic of the Soviet Union in 1922. Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Belarus gained independence in 1991. Since then, it has retained close ties with Russia, its most dominant neighbour, and has been led by the authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko.

Belarus's Soviet past

Belarus has a long history of Soviet influence. After the Russian Revolution in 1917, different states arose competing for legitimacy amid the Civil War, ultimately ending in the rise of the Byelorussian SSR, which became a founding constituent republic of the Soviet Union in 1922.

The Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR) was created in July 1920. The BSSR was one of four founding republics of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, established on 30 December 1922. The BSSR grew to the east in 1924, when Soviet authorities transferred the regions of Polotsk, Vitebsk, Orsha, and Mogilyov—which had large Belarusian populations—from the Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic to the BSSR. Gomel and Rechitsa followed in 1926.

Beginning under the regime of Joseph Stalin, nationalism was discouraged in the Soviet Union, and the BSSR, like the other constituent republics, was closely controlled. With the commencement of the first Five-Year Plan in 1928, new industries were established in Minsk and other leading towns. In the 1930s purges took the lives of many dissidents, intellectuals, and others in the BSSR.

Following the German attack on Poland in 1939 and the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Nonaggression Pact between Stalin’s Soviet Union and Adolf Hitler’s Germany, the U.S.S.R. attacked Poland from the east. Soviet troops occupied the area up to the Bug River and including the Białystok region, home to a substantial Belarusian population. Western Belarusian territory that had been surrendered to Poland in the Treaty of Riga was reinstated as part of the BSSR.

The German invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 overran the BSSR, although the garrison of the Brest fortress made a prolonged and courageous stand. During the German retreat in 1944, there was heavy fighting in many areas of the republic, with major battles near Vitebsk, Borisov, and Minsk. German occupation and retreat produced widespread devastation and loss of life: the death toll has been estimated at about one-fourth of the population of Soviet Belarus. At the end of the war, a treaty between the U.S.S.R. and Poland returned western Belarus to Soviet hands. The Polish population was forcibly deported en masse to Poland.

With the establishment of the United Nations in 1945, the BSSR was given a seat in the General Assembly in its own right despite its status as a constituent republic of the U.S.S.R. The BSSR was also one of the two Soviet republics that joined the United Nations along with the Ukrainian SSR as one of the original 51 members in 1945.

The BSSR was the hardest-hit Soviet republic in World War II; it remained under German occupation until 1944. The German Generalplan Ost called for the extermination, expulsion, or enslavement of most or all Belarusians to provide more living space in the East for Germans. Most of Western Belarus became part of the Reichskommissariat Ostland in 1941, but in 1943 the German authorities allowed local collaborators to set up a client state, the Belarusian Central Council.

During World War II, Belarus was home to a variety of guerrilla movements, including Jewish, Polish, and Soviet partisans. Belarusian partisan formations formed a large part of the Soviet partisans, and in the modern day these partisans have formed a core part of the Belarusian national identity, with Belarus continuing to refer to itself as the "partisan republic" since the 1970s. Following the war, many former Soviet partisans entered positions of government, among them Pyotr Masherov and Kirill Mazurov, both of whom were First Secretary of the Communist Party of Byelorussia. Until the late 1970s, the Belarusian government was almost entirely composed of former partisans.

The Byelorussian SSR was given a seat in the United Nations General Assembly together with the Soviet Union and Ukrainian SSR, becoming one of the founding members of the UN. This was part of a deal with the United States to ensure a degree of balance in the General Assembly, which, the USSR opined, was unbalanced in favor of the Western Bloc.

The BSSR was one of the original 15 constituent republics composing the Soviet Union from its entry into the union in 1922 until its dissolution in 1991. Executive power was exercised by the Byelorussian Communist Party authorities, at its top sits the Chairman of the Council of Ministers. Legislative power was vested in the unicameral parliament, the Supreme Soviet of Byelorussia, also dominated by the Communist Party.

The country's authoritarian government

Belarus has been led by a highly centralized and authoritarian government since 1994, when Alexander Lukashenko was elected as the country's first president in its first and only free election after independence. Lukashenko has been described as ""Europe's last dictator"" by some media outlets, politicians, and authors.

Under Lukashenko, Belarus has continued several Soviet-era policies, such as state ownership of large sections of the economy. Belarus is the only European country that continues to use capital punishment. The country ranks low in international measurements of freedom of the press and civil liberties.

Lukashenko has been officially re-elected as president several times, most recently in 2020, although none of these elections have been considered free or fair. The 2020 election led to mass protests and allegations of vote-rigging, with protesters facing violent persecution by the authorities. Lukashenko is not recognized as the legitimate president of Belarus by the United Kingdom, the European Union, or the United States.

The Belarusian government has been criticized for human rights violations and its persecution of non-governmental organizations, independent journalists, national minorities, and opposition politicians. Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have criticized Lukashenko's violations of human rights, and Belarus's Democracy Index rating is the lowest in Europe. The country is labelled as "not free" by Freedom House, and in the Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders, Belarus is ranked 153rd out of 180 countries.

The judicial system in Belarus lacks independence and is subject to political interference. Corrupt practices such as bribery are common during tender processes, and Belarus's anti-corruption system lacks whistleblower protection and a national ombudsman.

The legacy of its Soviet past

Belarus's Soviet past has had a lasting impact on the country, influencing its politics, economy, and society.

Political Legacy

Belarus's political landscape has been significantly shaped by its Soviet past. The country's communist political parties remained prominent even after the fall of the Soviet Union. The authoritarian style of governance that characterised the Soviet era persisted, with Alexander Lukashenko, who has been in in power since 1994, ruling the country with an iron fist. Lukashenko has faced widespread criticism from Western nations for his undemocratic practices, including election rigging and human rights abuses.

Economic Legacy

The Soviet era also left its mark on Belarus's economy. During Soviet rule, Belarus became a major centre of manufacturing in the western region of the USSR, with the establishment of large industrial enterprises such as BelAZ, MAZ, and the Minsk Tractor Plant. However, the country's economy suffered a significant blow in 1986 due to the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, which contaminated large areas of Belarusian territory. The disaster had long-term environmental, medical, and psychological consequences, and approximately one-fifth of Belarus's land remains radioactively contaminated.

Social and Cultural Legacy

The Soviet past also influenced the social and cultural fabric of Belarus. The Russian language gained equal status with Belarusian, and the country experienced significant population changes with the influx of Russians immigrating to fill industrial jobs. Additionally, the Soviet-era policies of de-Polonisation and Russification impacted the ethnic and cultural landscape, reshaping the country's demographics and cultural expressions.

Resistance and National Identity

During the Soviet era, Belarus witnessed resistance movements, such as the Belarusian national movement in the early 20th century, which sought to establish a Belarusian national state. This period was marked by conflicts between nationalist forces and the Bolshevik leadership, resulting in the suppression of Belarusian organisations and the arrest of their leaders. Nonetheless, the desire for national sovereignty persisted, ultimately leading to Belarus's independence in 1991.

The country's close ties with Russia

Belarus and Russia have a unique and complex relationship, with a shared history, deep cultural affinity, and intertwined economies. The two countries have long-standing defence-industrial cooperation, influenced by their mutual Soviet legacy. The Belarusian defence sector is almost entirely dependent on contracts with Moscow.

The Agreement on the Establishment of the Union State of Belarus and Russia, signed by the heads of state in 1999, sets out a legal basis for integration between the two countries. The agreement defines a series of major goals, including ensuring peaceful and democratic development, establishing a single economic and customs area, and pursuing agreed foreign, defence, and social policies.

Russia is Belarus's key trade partner and a major export market for Belarusian manufactures. In 2022, mutual trade between the two countries increased by almost 15%, with Russia accounting for more than half of Belarus's foreign trade. They are also developing cooperation in the areas of energy, transport, and industrial cooperation, with joint projects launched in 2022 for the production of import-substituting products.

Belarus and Russia have a joint regional military force and coordinate their air defence systems, performing joint military exercises. They also work together to prevent, reveal, and suppress crimes, terrorist acts, and human trafficking, particularly on their western border.

The two countries are also enhancing their cultural cooperation, with the annual festival Slaviansky Bazar in Vitebsk as one of their biggest and most renowned joint cultural projects. They also hold numerous other joint art, theatre, and cinema festivals annually.

The emergence of the Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic

The Formation of the Belorussian Democratic Republic

In March 1918, while most of the region was occupied by the German army, an independent Belarusian Democratic Republic was declared. However, as German troops withdrew after the war, the Bolsheviks established the Socialist Soviet Republic of Byelorussia in December 1918. This socialist republic was later merged with the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1919, forming the Lithuanian-Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic.

Territorial Changes and Conflict

The newly formed Lithuanian-Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic was short-lived due to the Polish-Soviet War. Polish forces advanced eastward, and by April 1919, they had captured Minsk and other territories. The conflict resulted in the signing of the Treaty of Riga in March 1921, which divided the Belarusian region between Poland and Soviet Russia.

The Establishment of the Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic

In July 1920, the Red Army retook Minsk from Polish forces, and on July 31, 1920, the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic was re-established. This republic became one of the four founding members of the Soviet Union in December 1922, along with the republics of Russia, Transcaucasia, and Ukraine.

Territorial Expansion

The Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic expanded its territory in the following years. In 1924, Soviet authorities transferred the regions of Polotsk, Vitebsk, Orsha, and Mogilyov, which had large Belarusian populations, from the Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic to the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. Gomel and Rechitsa were also added in 1926, further enlarging the republic.

Political Control and Repression

Under Joseph Stalin's regime, nationalism was discouraged in the Soviet Union, and the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic was closely controlled. The republic experienced purges in the 1930s, which resulted in the deaths of many dissidents, intellectuals, and others. During World War II, the republic was occupied by Nazi Germany, causing widespread devastation and loss of life.

Independence and Modern-Day Belarus

Following World War II, the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic regained western Belarus from Poland. The republic was a founding member of the United Nations in 1945 and was given a seat in the General Assembly. On July 27, 1990, the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic declared sovereignty, and on August 25, 1991, it proclaimed its independence from the Soviet Union, renaming itself the Republic of Belarus. The Soviet Union formally dissolved on December 26, 1991.

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