After gaining independence, Belarus occurred on the international map in two capacities – firstly, as a post-Soviet nation and secondly, as a European nation with an extensive historic heritage of state building. In different times, territorial formations in Belarus such as Polotsk, Turov and other principalities of the ancient Belarus in 9–13 centuries, the Great Duchy of Lithuania in 13–18 centuries, Belarusian People’s Republic of 1918–1925 and Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic of 1919–1990 were all active in foreign policy. They all featured some key imperatives in foreign policy. These are: - Secure sovereignty and independence - Territorial integrity and border security - Non-interference in domestic affairs - National unity on the fundamental principles of state building - Strong linkage between domestic and foreign policies Belarus has always been affected by the inter-country developments in Europe. Virtually, any conflict in Eastern Europe brought heavy death toll and destructions to Belarus. Therefore, Belarus believes that sound partnership with both Eastern and Western countries is a prerequisite for stronger atmosphere of trust, peace and better understanding among nations in our region. The 1990 Declaration of the State Sovereignty with true economic and political independence brought in an entirely new dimension of our international activities. Belarus embarked on building up a truly sovereign state, self-reliant foreign policy aimed at securing our independence, integration to European processes and enlarging cooperation with neighbouring and other nations. The formation of a new foreign policy of Belarus with its new imperatives saw a number of hurdles. Belarus sought to formulate an adequate cooperation mechanism in post-Soviet area, re-establish broken linkages after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, draw up the basis for relations with Western nations and integrate into the global and regional security arrangements. The prime tasks also were to effectively promote our economic interests abroad, as well as to find our niche in global economy. Belarus was building up its self-reliant foreign policy in an extremely difficult environment as changes inside the country concurred with major global challenges at the end of the 20th century. The world saw both the creation of new spots of influence and larger number of new actors in international relations. The elements defining a nation’s strength have changed as well following an increased value of financial might, communication and scientific capabilities while ‘classic’ military and political tools retained their strong influence. To build up an effective foreign policy required stronger emphasis on transparency, openness and democracy, as well as larger record of positions of major countries and international organizations. Despite all these difficulties, Belarus has managed to maintain its relations with the rest of the world without compromising its well-established national interests. Our foreign policy continues to be both holistic and flexible securing our independence, sustainable development and firm integration into global economy. Legally, the principles and goals of Belarus’ foreign policy were set out in a separate law signed by the President in 2005. |
