Belarus-Russia Integration

The aim of this book is to provide the reader with an overview of the phenomenon of Russian-Belarusian integration. It is remarkable that such an important and highly contested issue as the attempt to build a common state between Russia and Belarus has received so little scholarly attention. The discussion has been largely limited to the policy-making circles of both states, media publications and fierce exchanges of opinions between the supporters and opponents of the creation of the Union State. Few people in both countries have been left unaware of the raging polemics. Notwithstanding, the sense of the process was difficult to determine. Open public discussion never took place. The Belarusian regime was able to privatize the integrationist discourse and to exclude interpretations, other than its own, of integration from the public domain. The electorate was left largely with the official interpretation of events, which was political and economic integration with the Russian Federation to the furthest extent possible, ultimately aimed at building a common state. However, the preservation of Belarusian sovereignty was said to be unquestionable, a challenging task indeed.