Belarus (or the Republic of Belarus) is a small state in Eastern Europe. It is located at the western borders of Russia, north of Ukraine. This country is quite densely populated. The number of inhabitants is 9 million 491 thousand 823 people. The area is 207,600 km 2 . The population density is 47.89 people / km 2 . The official languages used are Russian and Belarusian.
For a long time, President of the Republic of Belarus has been Alexander Lukashenko. He first took office on 07/20/1994. Belarus is a unitary state, divided into six regions. The city of Minsk has a special status. The most important area of foreign policy is the international relations of Belarus and Russia.
Relations between Belarus and other countries
Relations of Belarus with other countries can be described as strained. They balance between the interests of the EU and the requirements of the Customs Union with Russia. Western countries are actively interfering in the country's policy, trying to draw Belarus into its sphere of influence. The imposition of sanctions is detrimental to the relations of this state with the EU countries, leading to economic losses on the Belarusian side. The most stringent restrictions are imposed on Lukashenko himself and members of his entourage. Against this background, relations between Belarus and Russia look much more peaceful.
Belarus has good relations with China. However, economic ties with this country are difficult due to the large distance between the countries and the lack of common borders.
Economy of Belarus
The Belarusian model of the economy is significantly different from the European and Russian. She retained the features of a socialist order. The state controls almost all spheres of economic activity. Central authorities also regulate prices. This makes the country's economy stable enough.
In the republic there is an acute shortage of fuel resources, as a result of which they have to be imported. Favorable climatic conditions contribute to the development of agriculture. Also, the country has developed engineering, energy, production of building materials, chemical, forestry, construction.
The volume of imports is significantly higher than the volume of exports, due to lack of resources. The difference between them is $ 5.8 billion. Another disadvantage of the economy is the large amount of external debt. Up to 10% of the republican budget goes only to service interest payments. The GDP growth rate is not large.
Industry and agriculture of Belarus
The share of industry in the structure of GDP is 37%. This is mainly manufacturing. The country exports fertilizers, petroleum products, machinery, products and chemicals.
Agriculture is dominated by agriculture and dairy farming. Mostly grown potatoes, wheat, sugar beets. Logging, once a major part, is now negligible.
The peculiarity of relations between Russia and Belarus
The interactions between the two countries are very active. Despite various frictions and difficulties, Russian-Belarusian relations have the character of union cooperation. In December 1999, the Treaty on the Formation of the Union State of Russia and Belarus appeared. But already throughout the 90s allied ties between the two countries were formed. To date, there are over 160 different treaties and agreements of a bilateral nature. In addition to them, there are multilateral agreements within the framework of the CSTO, CIS, and EAEU.
Political relations between Russia and Belarus are of great importance for both states. The strategic union is one of the priorities in the foreign policy of the Russian Federation. There are active bilateral contacts between the authorities of the two countries, confirming the parties' interest in resolving disputes and establishing close partnership. In particular, in 2016, the presidents of the two countries held 7 meetings, and there were even more between the heads of government. In 2017, the presidents met already 8 times. One of the last meetings between V. Putin and A. Lukashenko took place on 05/14/2018 in the city of Sochi. In the summer of 2018, Alexander Lukashenko attended the World Cup, which was held in Moscow.
In addition to summits, active contacts are also being maintained between various ministries and departments.
Reasons for close contact
The strategic nature of relations between Moscow and Minsk is determined by the geopolitical situation of the Republic of Belarus, as well as partnerships that have developed since the times of the Soviet Union. Belarus is located between Russia and the EU, and for this reason it is important both for our country and for the West. Europe wants to spread its influence to the east, to the borders of Russia, while Russia is trying to counteract this in every way. Loss of relations with this state and its transfer under EU jurisdiction are extremely unprofitable for Russia. This would weaken the influence of our country in the west of the Eurasian continent and would increase the risk of NATO expansion eastward.
For Belarus, a deterioration in relations with Russia would mean a decrease in the political protection of the Lukashenko regime and a great risk of color revolutions in that country. The country's economy would also suffer serious losses. This is due to the lack of natural resources in Belarus, which it is forced to purchase from Russia. The export of Belarusian products to our country is also significant. A break in relations with Russia would lead to a commercial collapse, since redirecting products to the EU would not be easy. In particular, due to higher environmental standards and product quality requirements in the European Union. As a result, this would lead to an increase in external debt and an increase in the risk of default, as well as a decrease in living standards in the country.
All this gives reason to believe that while the Lukashenko regime is alive, there will be good partnerships between our countries. And various controversial issues will be resolved.
Trade and economic relations of Russia and Belarus
Russia is the main economic partner of Belarus. Our country accounts for exactly half of the total Belarusian foreign trade turnover. In 2017 alone, it increased by 26% and reached $ 30.2 billion. Moreover, the export of Russian products to Belarus is much higher than the export of Belarusian goods to Russia. Thus, trade relations between Russia and Belarus are very significant.
Our country exports there minerals, machinery, equipment, metals, chemistry, products, wood, shoes, textiles, paper. Belarus, in turn, supplies us with agricultural products. materials, machinery, chemistry, wood, shoes and textiles, metals, minerals. Trade between the two countries is estimated at $ 10.7 billion.
The investment flow from Russia to Belarus is also significant. In 2017, the Russian Federation accounted for 38% of all external investments in the Belarusian economy. In monetary terms, it is $ 3.7 billion. Belarus did not remain in debt either: 66.9% of the total amount of deposits in the economy of other countries was invested in Russia. This is approximately $ 3.68 billion.
All this means the importance of economic relations between Russia and Belarus for bilateral cooperation.
Fuel and energy
The most important joint project in the economic sphere is the construction of a Belarusian nuclear power plant with a capacity of 2.4 GW. The first unit of this station will start operating in 2019.
Even more significant for bilateral cooperation is cooperation in the fuel sector. Oil and gas come to the republic mainly from Russia. Each year, our country supplies there approximately 21 million tons of oil and 20 billion cubic meters. m. of gas. It was supposed to increase the volume of deliveries from 2016, however, due to underpayments from the Belarusian side, this idea was initially abandoned. After negotiations and the resolution of differences, it was again decided to increase supplies.
Military cooperation
This type of cooperation has been developing between countries since 2009. Then an agreement was signed on military-technical cooperation. Later, an agreement was signed on joint border protection and joint efforts in the field of air defense. Bilateral exercises are common practice. Military equipment in Russia and Belarus is largely the same. An important role in military cooperation is played by the interaction of the two countries within the framework of the CSTO.
Complex stages of a relationship
Relations between Russia and Belarus have always been close, but never perfect. They improved or worsened. This was largely due to the divergence of views of the leaders of these countries on issues important for bilateral cooperation. The personal relations of Lukashenko and Boris Yeltsin were quite warm. The 90s saw the heyday of Russian-Belarusian relations. Financial injections into the economy of Belarus from Russia were then very large, which placed a heavy burden on the already meager Russian budget.
With the advent of Vladimir Putin, the nature of Russian-Belarusian relations became cooler and pragmatic. At the same time, Putin was a supporter of the unification of Russia and Belarus into one union state, in which Lukashenko was assigned a very modest role as the representative of the Russian president in the Belarusian Federal District. This idea of the president of Belarus did not suit, and therefore the union state never formed. Lukashenko also refused to introduce a single currency. Oil and gas relations were also very strained.
The future of bilateral relations
Now various projects of bilateral cooperation are being implemented. However, many are interested in the question: is a break in relations between Russia and Belarus possible? No one knows the exact answer, but most likely no than yes. Lukashenko’s complicated relationship with the United States and EU countries does not leave him much freedom of choice. Of course, he understands this and therefore makes concessions to the Russian side. Russia also makes concessions to Belarus. Such relations cannot be called friendly, but they are quite reliable, since the conflicts between Belarus and the West will continue until Lukashenko resigns.
Conclusion
Thus, relations between Russia and Belarus are very important for both countries and are part of their state policy. Despite some disagreements, they are very close and apply to different types of cooperation. Russian-Belarusian relations are unlikely to get cold during the reign of Lukashenko, but after his departure their deterioration is very likely.