Russia’s Policy Towards Belarus aft er 2014 – Change or Continuation?

Abstract

Abstract: The purpose of the article is to present and analyze the problems of Russia’s relations with Belarus after 2014 and to attempt to assess whether the policy of the Russian Federation towards its western neighbor has changed after that time. In the text, I analyzed the main determinants, showing the relationships of both entities and the increasingly common discrepancies. During the reign of Boris Yeltsin and Vladimir Putin, Russian-Belarusian relations evolved from a partner alliance to growing tensions, caused by the reluctance of Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko, to closer political and economic integration with Russia. The main thesis of the article assumes that after the annexation of Crimea, Russia has significantly changed its policy towards Belarus, taking concrete steps to unite the two countries. The authorities of the Russian Federation believe that only the political and economic integration of both countries will allow Russia to have a broader impact on events taking place in Central and Eastern Europe and in the post-Soviet area. The main research paradigm used in the text is the system analysis method.