Why History Matters in Belarus

... state that could, in favourable geopolitical circumstances, be moved away from Russia's and into Poland's sphere of influence. As a rich economic asset with its factories and 10 million strong, educated and highly urbanised population, the addition to Poland of Belarus as an adjacent dependent state would greatly strengthen Poland’s strategic weight and voice in the EU and NATO. There is also the seductive possibility of moving the NATO frontier forward to the Russia -Belarus border near Smolensk. The old ...