In dubio pro-Russia
History, Politics, and Dictatorship in Belarus
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
Belarus has maintained an ambivalent relationship with Russia for decades. Since perestroika, the Belarusian national movement has seen the country’s dependence on Russia as an obstacle to nation- and state-building. The political leadership seeks proximity to the Kremlin, but at the same time emphasises its independence. Historians play a central role in this debate: some support the regime and a positive view of Russia, while others pursue a national Belarusian historiography. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the image of Russia fluctuated between nostalgic attachment and anti-colonial demarcation. Since the protests of 2020 and the war against Ukraine, Belarus and Russia have moved closer to one another. History increasingly serves as a means of securing power and is being politically instrumentalised in both countries.
(Osteuropa 5/2025, pp. 155–166)