U.s. Foreign Policy Towards Belarus - 1688 Words

To: Secretary of State John Kerry From: Rob Foglia, country desk officer of Belarus Re: Recommended U.S. foreign policy towards Belarus Date: October 12, 2014 Oppression in Belarus Breaking Free from Russia Belarus has the veil of a political stranglehold cast over it by the looming and neighboring Russia. Freedoms are non-existent, a tyrant maintains control over the country, and democracy is nowhere in sight. I have a few recommendations on how U.S. foreign policy towards Belarus can help fix many of these issues, and help direct the country towards Democracy. First, I will highlight some history on the so called ‘Republic† of Belarus to help put some context on the situation. Belarus became one of the first members of the†¦show more content†¦This led to elections in the early 1990’s, and Belarus declared itself independent in July 27th, 1990, and wrote a Declaration of State Sovereignty. The newly formed republic became primarily communist, mainly because of all the Russian integration that had already occurred. In 1994, The Republic of Belarus elected Alexander Lukashenko as the President of Belarus. He was officially reelected in 2001, 2006 and 2010. However, the United States (as well as other western Nations) does not recognize the results of the 2010 elections under which the Central Election Commission of Belarus declared Lukashenko president. This is because Western countries decried the election as a farce and an egregious affront to democracy and human rights. Many of Lukashenko’s opposition leaders had mysterious disappearances. The United States and the European Union called for the release of all imprisoned former candi dates, but took no further action except a travel ban on Lukashenko. By contrast, countries such as Syria, Russia, and China congratulated the re-elected incumbent. This is just a sample of the Dictatorship that is veiled as a Republic in Belarus. Transitioning into Democracy For a nation to truly be free, certain rights have to be available to the people. Freedom of speech, press, peaceful assembly, and religion are just a few of these things.