The Republic of Belarus is a beautiful landlocked in the Eastern European region, with a population of 9.5 million having beautiful lakes, mountains, and castles.
Belarus has a border with Russia to its North East, Poland to the West, Lithuania and Latvia to the North West, and Ukraine to the South.
The Belarusian land covers an area of 80,154 square miles. Minsk, the capital, is the administrative center and the largest city in Belarus.
Formerly known as Belorussia or White Russia, the Republic of Belarus was the smallest of the three Slavic Republics of the Soviet Union.
Until the 20th Century, different states controlled different parts of modern-day Belarus throughout history. The Principality of Polotsk, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth were among those areas controlled by different powers at different times.
Geo-political Significance of Belarus
The Republic of Belarus is an Eastern European state between the more extraordinary powers. The European Union states surround it, but most importantly, it is wedged between NATO and Russia.
The strategic position of the Republic between the rival poles of the world makes it very significant geopolitically. Belarus acts as a buffer zone for Russian territory. This strategic importance is based on Russia’s experience of WWII when Nazi troops attacked Belarus, which resulted in the loss of a significant portion of its inhabitants.
On the other hand, Belarus holds great strategic importance for NATO as this land helps NATO in defending the Baltic States from any military aggression or even hybrid warfare. This is why the European Hybrid Centre of Excellence is located in Helsinki.
People
About four-fifths of the country’s population is ethnic Belarusians, whereas the Russians who migrated to the Belorussian Slavic Republic during the 1960s, 70s, and 80s are the second largest ethnic group. They constitute roughly one-tenth of the entire population. The remainder consists of Poles, Jews, Tatars, Latvians, and Lithuanians.
Official Languages
The two official languages in the Republic of Belarus are Belarusian and Russian. Belarusian is central to the national identity of the people of Belarus. It is an Eastern Slavic language that is transitional in dialect to Russian and Ukrainian languages.
On the other hand, Russian was adopted as the official language after the Belarusian referendum of 1995, making it the most widely spoken language in Belarus.
Religion in Belarus
The Belarusian Orthodox Church predominates in the country’s religious landscape. There are 1,709 communities, 15 eparchies, six religious schools, 35 monasteries and convents, 15 brotherhoods, ten sisterhoods, and one mission that make up this sacred institution.
The Orthodox tradition inspires many of the nation’s most well-known structures. However, the country’s legislation and constitution ensure everyone’s right to freedom of conscience and freedom of religion.
It guarantees everyone’s right to social justice, equality, protection of rights and interests regardless of religion and religious affiliation, and freedom of association with religious organizations.
Flag of Belarus
The current flag of Belarus was changed on 7 June 1995, post the referendum voted on by the people of Belarus. It was replaced by the flag of Belorussia or White Russia of 1918 before it became the Belorussian Soviet Republic.
That historic flag was plain white, reflecting the nation’s name at that time, White Russia. Later, a red horizontal stripe was added to the white flag’s center. This stripe represented the traditional coat of arms used by Belarus under Lithuanian rule, which consisted of a red shield with a white horse and a knight.
After the fall of the communist government in 1991, this flag was re-adopted. However, according to the Decree of the President of Belarus on 7 June 1995, the new flag of Belarus is described as “a rectangular cloth consisting of two longitudinal stripes: red upper stripe and green lower stripe that are two-thirds and one-third of the flag width, respectively.
A vertical red-on-white Belarusian decorative pattern, which occupies one-ninth of the flag’s length, is placed against the flagstaff. The flag’s ratio of width to height is 1:2. The flag is fixed on a flagstaff painted golden (ochre).”
Although the government of President Alexander Lukashenko has restricted the display of the last flag, it is still used by the Belarusian diaspora in protests against the government.
Economy
The Republic of Belarus is an export-oriented country with a well-established manufacturing industry. Along with that, it has a flourishing services sector and agricultural sector. The State plays a significant role in the economy of modern-day Belarus; hence it adheres to the concept of a socially-oriented market economy.
Industrial Sector
One of the major sectors that run the Belarusian economy includes Industry. Industrial production accounts for approximately a quarter of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the state of Belarus, i.e., 25.7 % as of 2019.
The state’s most developed industrial sectors include the energy, pharmaceutical, engineering, woodworking, light and food, and petrochemical industries.
Agriculture and Forestry
When it comes to agriculture and forestry, the per capita agricultural output of the state of Belarus is almost equivalent to those of developed states.
This sector of the economy not only helps Belarus sustain its own agricultural needs but is also one of the primary sources of generating revenue for the state.
Construction Industry
The construction sector of Belarus comprises more than 10,000 architectural and construction organizations that provide industrial and civil construction services. Russia is one of the leading partners of the Republic of Belarus in the construction industry.
Cultural Norms of the Republic of Belarus
In the Republic of Belarus, the supreme spiritual values are based on morality and humanity. These values are what shape the cultural identity of the Belarusian people.
These cultural values and traditional norms have been passed on to people for ages. These norms mainly include high ideals of doing good and justice, showing respect to others, and, most importantly, prohibition of evil and violence.
One of the distinctive features of the Belarusian culture is that these values have been materialized in the art and architecture as well as unique works of literature and music. The state policy concerning culture is described in the Code of Conduct of the Republic of Belarus.
Festivals and Celebrations
Belarus’ Independence Day is observed on July 3, commemorating the Soviet Union’s liberation of Minsk from German control in 1944. Opposition parties and some Belarusians celebrate the holiday on July 27, the day state sovereignty was proclaimed in 1990.
Most Soviet holidays, including May 9 as Victory Day and religious festivals such as the Orthodox and Roman Catholic Easters, are still observed. A presidential fund for culture and the arts supports several yearly and biennial festivals.
Festivals and celebrating traditions play a significant role in the society building of the Belarusian states. Out of the major festivals celebrated by the people of Belarus, the Slavic Bazaar in Vitseyebsk, the Spring International Music Festival, and the Arts for Children and Youth Festival are highly cherished.
Belarusian Cuisine
Belarusian cuisine frequently uses ingredients that are domestically grown and locally nourished. Of the locally grown crops, potato is the staple ingredient used to make dishes like potato dumplings, potato pancakes, and baked potato pie.
In addition to these foods, rye bread is frequently served with borsch (beet soup), hog stew, stuffed chicken, beef sausage, and pastries with meat or cabbage fillings. Fresh cheese (tvorog) and fermented cheese are popular dairy products (siyr).
Kompot is a berry juice, while kvass is a traditional beverage made from fermented bread. The preferred alcoholic beverage is mainly vodka, while beer has gained popularity, especially among younger drinkers.
To sum it up, the landlocked Eastern European Republic of Belarus is among those unexplored countries rich in culture and traditions. Although it is an economically weak state, its strategic location makes it significant for the greater powers in the contemporary world.
*The research is conducted by the author and TDI do not take responsibility of the errors in the research. This also do not necessarily represent the position of the institution.
