Executive Summary: Belarus is updating its National Security Concept and military doctrine amid increasing tensions in Eastern Europe brought on by Russia’s war against Ukraine Drafts of both documents emphasize that Minsk’s best course to preserving national security emerges from better relations with Europe, despite... MORE

Executive Summary: Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka has asserted that expanding economic integration The population is split between the Russo-centric and “Westernizing” views on independent Belarus, with Belarusians seemingly outgrowing the former while being unable to embrace the latter fully. A clearer view of the two... MORE

Executive Summary: The new law granting Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka life-long immunity was necessary to avoid future political retribution that could destabilize Belarus. Western misconceptions of official Minsk’s actions greatly hamper any chances of reversing Belarus’s growing economic dependence on Russia. Positive change in Belarus... MORE

On December 31, 2023, Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka declared in his New Year’s address that the “Year of Peace and Creation” has come to an end in Belarus and that 2024 will usher in the “Year of Quality.” He emphasized the importance of the connection... MORE

Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka and leader of the opposition-in-exile Svetlana Tikhanovskaya spent the previous week abroad trying to improve their standing with influential global powers, with Lukashenka visiting China and Tikhanovskaya traveling to the United States. A triangular model has emerged that characterizes the current... MORE

On December 1, Belta, Belarus’s official press agency, admitted that President Alyaksandr Lukashenka seemingly went off script during his speech at the UN Climate Summit and “added sharpness to his presentation” (Belta, December 1). Lukashenka declared that repeatedly expressing concerns about climate change at a... MORE

On November 23, the latest summit of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) was held in Minsk. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan snubbed the meeting over a rift with the Kremlin. The leaders of the five other members—Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan—were present, including... MORE

Over three days, Belarusian political analyst Artyom Shraibman presented what seems to be a realistic outlook for the country’s opposition-minded audience (Svaboda; Carnegie Politika, November 7; Zerkalo, November 9). Shraibman’s November 7 interview with the Belarusian service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty further illuminates this... MORE

On November 3, Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka paid a visit to Astravets, the site of Belarus’s nuclear power plant located 15 kilometers (about 9 miles) from the Lithuanian border (President.gov.by, November 3). The visit was arranged in concert with Russian energy corporation Rosatom completing the... MORE

On October 26 and 27, the international conference, “Eurasian Security: Reality and Prospects in a Transforming World,” was held in Minsk. The event took place under the auspices of Belarus’s current chairmanship of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). About 300 representatives from 30 countries... MORE