Budzma campaign and the Belarusian Language Society launch the second season of a weekly Kraj.BY program which is online-travel throughout Belarus. Legal Transformation Center Lawtrend has released the latest data of its monitoring on information provided at the official state web sites of Belarus. Falanster Minsk NGO invites to a meeting to discuss the topic how to improve the city's infrastructure for its residents. A particular attention will be paid to the expanding community of cyclists.
On 24 July, Russian Ambassador Alexander Surikov revealed Moscow's proposal to Minsk to take over production of several thousand new components used by the Russian defence industry. Russian official openly stated that the conflict in Ukraine was the issue standing behind their offer. In June, president Poroshenko of Ukraine banned all forms of military technical cooperation with Russia.
Late in the evening on 29 July Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko phoned his Belarusian counterpart and proposed him to host a meeting of a tripartite contact group on Ukraine. The negotiations' format included OSCE, Russia and Ukraine. Alexander Lukashenka agreed and the talks were scheduled on 31 July. The contact group talks took place in Lukashenka's residence Zaslaūje near Minsk behind the closed doors. Minsk got the opportunity to host these negotiations because of Belarus' neutrality in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
On 30 July, the Belarusian foreign ministry held a large-scale commemoration of the first World Day against Trafficking in Persons. Belarus prides itself upon being the driving force of multilateral efforts to combat this modern offshoot of slave trade. In fact, it may be the only Belarusian foreign policy initiative enjoying strong international consensus and firm backing from many Western countries.
On 23 July, the main Belarusian portal TUT.by blew the Internet up with an article about Belarusians who were going around popping car tires with Russian number plates in Minsk. The site's administration removed nearly two thousand comments for inciting ethnic hatred. The attitude of some Belarusians towards Russia is getting more radical due to the conflict in Ukraine, and these tires appear to be just one example of their growing displeasure. In a turn of events unheard of in Belarus previously, people are also target cars with Ukrainian symbols and historical Belarusian white-red-white flag symbols.
President Alexander Lukashenka instructed his ambassadors to prepare to withstand and counter soft-power pressure from global players, a category that implicitly includes Russia. Meanwhile, Minsk is getting ready to host talks between the parties in conflict in the Ukrainian crisis. At a meeting in Brussels, Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei proposed to include Russia in the Eastern Partnership's (EaP) events and activities so that Moscow had a say in European integration matters. Belarus also sought to make foreign travel easier for its own citizens.
Organisers of the International Congress of Belarusian Studies officially published its list of sections and panels for the upcoming event. This year's Congress will include a wide range topics such as culture, Belarusian language translations of the Bible and problems facing the modernisation of the Belarusian economy. The Congress remains a rare opportunity for scholars from all over the world to gather with their colleagues from Belarus. This year it will take place the 3-5 October in Kaunas.
Hailed by Belarusian state TV for bringing independence and sovereignty to Belarus, media outside Belarus have offered somewhat different opinions of Lukashenka on his 20th anniversary as Belarus' leader. Here are three of the main narratives used on this occasion. Narrative 1: Lukashenka Climbs the Greasy Pole Conditions in which Lukashenka came to power. In Dziennik Gazeta Prawna, a Polish daily, Michał Potocki argues that in a society still nostalgic for the USSR, Lukashenko’s chief opponents in 1994 – Zianon Pazniak (Belarusian Popular Front) and Stanislau Shuskevich, speaker of Parliament, stood little chance of winning.
Although many question whether Belarus is really an independent state today, its three independence days paint a different picture. Depending on one's political views, Belarusians consider either 25 March, 3 July or 27 July as their real day for commemorating their independence as a nation. On 27 July, Belarusian civil society activists and journalists symbolically celebrated the third of these independence days - the 24th anniversary of the Declaration of Belarus' Sovereignty in 1990. Two decades ago it was essentially the main official holiday for the young nation.
Cycling initiatives bloom in Belarus. MaeSens donations exceed $300,000. New Homel campaign launches a hotline for residents on local issues. European Intercultural Festival announces creative competitions. Makei flies Brussels, Head of Lithuanian MFA – to Minsk. Belarus and United States reciprocally reduce visa costs.
For the first time over the last six months, in June Belarus saw an increase in its foreign exchange reserves. This growth was due to the issuance of a bridge loan by Russian VTB Bank. At the same time, the overall amount of foreign exchange reserves remains relatively low, a problem which has been influenced by an increase in foreign debt repayments this year.
Earlier this month the Belarusian media put out a story on the Belarusian military unit Pahonia, which is training in the Valyń region of Ukraine in order to join Ukrainian army. Fighters did not reveal their names, fearing potential KGB pressure, but Ukrainian officials say many Belarusians have contacted them to join the unit. Some Belarusians were also detected on the other side of the conflict. While they did not form any special unit and are trying to keep their involvement under wraps as Belarus' KGB has already initiated a number of criminal cases against them for being mercenaries.
Russia wants to maintain its control over the minds of the population of CIS countries. Belarus develops its own anti-missile system, the Halberd. The Kremlin hopes that its allies will help it with supplying it military equipment that it is not longer able to directly access through Ukraine. The UAV Grif learns to fly. The military and industrial sector is looking to make some more money, while the army has none to speak of. Another arrest in a high-profile corruption case is made in the Homiel region.
More than 65% of Belarusian university and high school students smoke, according to recent estimates from the Ministry of Health. While smoking is declining across Europe, a growing number of young Belarusians are turning to cigarettes due to lax regulations and low prices. Cheap cigarettes from Belarus are also being smuggled into Western Europe, involving thousands of Belarusians who regularly engage in criminal activity. Why do cigarettes in Belarus remain among the cheapest in Europe?