Editing Belarus (section)

===Lukashenko era===
[[File:Belarus 1997 CIA map.jpg|thumb|1997 map of Belarus]]
A [[Constitution of Belarus|national constitution]] was adopted in March 1994 in which the functions of prime minister were given to the [[President of Belarus]]. A two-round [[1994 Belarusian presidential election|election for the presidency on 24 June 1994 and 10 July 1994]]<ref name=Factbook/> catapulted the formerly unknown [[Alexander Lukashenko]] into national prominence. He garnered 45% of the vote in the first round and 80%<ref name="byind"/> in the second, defeating [[Vyacheslav Kebich]] who received 14% of the vote. The elections were the first and only free elections in Belarus after independence.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/116265.stm Profile: Europe's last dictator?] BBC News, 10 September 2001</ref>

The 2000s saw some economic disputes between Belarus and its primary economic partner, Russia. The first one was the [[2004 Russia–Belarus energy dispute]] when Russian energy giant [[Gazprom]] ceased the import of gas into Belarus because of price disagreements. The [[2007 Russia–Belarus energy dispute]] centered on accusations by Gazprom that Belarus was siphoning oil from the [[Druzhba pipeline]] that runs through Belarus. Two years later the so-called [[Milk War]], a trade dispute, started when Russia wanted Belarus to recognize the independence of [[Abkhazia]] and [[South Ossetia]] and through a series of events ended up banning the import of dairy products from Belarus.

In 2011, Belarus suffered [[Economy of Belarus#Crisis of 2011|a severe economic crisis]] attributed to Lukashenko's government's centralized control of the economy, with inflation reaching 108.7%.<ref name="2011-crisis">{{cite web |author=Andrew E. Kramer |date=11 May 2011 |title=Belarus Economic Crisis Deepens as Currency Plunges |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/12/world/europe/12belarus.html |url-access=limited |work=The New York Times}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Around the same time the [[2011 Minsk Metro bombing]] occurred in which 15 people were killed and 204 were injured. Two suspects, who were arrested within two days, confessed to being the perpetrators and were executed by shooting in 2012. The official version of events as publicised by the Belarusian government was questioned in the unprecedented wording of the [[UN Security Council]] statement condemning "the apparent terrorist attack" intimating the possibility that the Belarusian government itself was behind the bombing.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.un.org/press/en/2011/sc10225.doc.htm|title=Security Council Press Statement on Minsk Bombing &#124; Meetings Coverage and Press Releases|website=www.un.org}}</ref>

[[File:Alexander Lukashenko, opening of Slavianski Bazar 2014.jpg|thumb|[[Alexander Lukashenko]] has ruled Belarus since 1994.]]
[[2020–2021 Belarusian protests|Mass protests]] erupted across the country following the disputed [[2020 Belarusian presidential election]],<ref>{{cite news |title=Belarus's Protests Aren't Particularly Anti-Putin |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/08/19/belarus-protest-not-anti-russian-putin-interfere/ |work=Foreign Policy |date=19 August 2020}}</ref> in which Lukashenko sought a sixth term in office.<ref>{{cite news |title=Protests in Belarus continue despite challenger's departure |url=https://apnews.com/dc7ec04bfb73782a094c18ed4e63feaa |work=Associated Press |date=11 August 2020}}</ref><!-- Russian and EU leaders warned of any external interference in Belarus's internal affairs.<ref>{{cite news |title=EU leaders to warn Russia against Belarus interference |url=https://euobserver.com/foreign/149166 |work=EUobserver In 2019, Lukashenko had bilateral talks in |date=18 August 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Putin warns western leaders over 'meddling' in Belarus |url=https://www.ft.com/content/f96fdf91-6826-4af2-923d-ff14947fcd15 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/https://www.ft.com/content/f96fdf91-6826-4af2-923d-ff14947fcd15 |archive-date=10 December 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |work=Financial Times |date=18 August 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Russian FM in Syria, meets Assad in first visit since 2012 |publisher=Associated Press |date=7 September 2020 |url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/russian-fm-syria-meets-assad-115535854.html |access-date=7 September 2020 }}</ref>--> Neighbouring countries Poland and Lithuania do not recognize Lukashenko as the legitimate president of Belarus and the Lithuanian government has allotted a residence for main opposition candidate [[Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya]] and other members of the Belarusian opposition in [[Vilnius]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Belarus asks Lithuania to extradite opposition leader Tsikhanouskaya |date=5 March 2021 |url=https://www.euronews.com/2021/03/05/belarus-asks-lithuania-to-extradite-opposition-leader-tsikhanouskaya |publisher=Euronews |access-date=13 April 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Lithuania to Belarus: 'Rather watch hell freeze over' than deliver Tsikhanouskaya |url=https://www.dw.com/en/lithuania-to-belarus-rather-watch-hell-freeze-over-than-deliver-tsikhanouskaya/a-56787250 |publisher=Deutsche Welle |access-date=13 April 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Headquarters of Tsikhanouskaya, Coordination Council and National Anti-Crisis Management |date=7 January 2021 |url=https://www.voiceofbelarus.com/headquarters-of-tsikhanouskaya/ |publisher=Voice of Belarus |access-date=13 April 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Belarus protests: Why Poland is backing the opposition |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-54090389 |work=BBC News |date=10 September 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Belarus opposition leader: Foreign mediation may be needed |url=https://apnews.com/c70e47ca9c2c3526324c89982c1bac26 |work=Associated Press |date=9 September 2020}}</ref> Neither is Lukashenko recognized as the legitimate president of Belarus by the European Union, Canada, the United Kingdom or the United States.<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 August 2020 |title=El Pais interview with HR/VP Borrell: "Lukashenko is like Maduro. We do not recognize him but we must deal with him" |url= https://eeas.europa.eu/headquarters/headquarters-homepage/84346/el-pais-interview-hrvp-borrell-%E2%80%9Clukashenko-maduro-we-do-not-recognize-him-he-must-deal-him%E2%80%9D_en |publisher=eeas.europa.eu}}</ref><ref>Dave Lawler, [https://www.axios.com/us-lukashenko-president-belarus-353ed235-98f7-446f-919a-6a6cdab81975.html "U.S. no longer recognizes Lukashenko as the legitimate president of Belarus"], ''Axios''. 24 September 2020.</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/belarus-election-result-2020-protest-uk-lukashenko-dominic-raab-latest-a9673596.html |title=Belarus election: UK refuses to recognise the result and demands international investigation into 'grisly repression' of protests |website=The Independent |location= London |date=17 August 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada-denounces-lukashenko-inauguration-belarus-1.5736840 |date=24 September 2020 |title=Canada denounces Lukashenko's inauguration in Belarus, preparing sanctions over human rights violations |work=CBC News}}</ref> The European Union, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States have all imposed sanctions against Belarus because of the rigged election and political oppression during the ongoing protests in the country.<ref>{{Cite news |date=24 August 2020 |title= U.S., EU Sanction Belarus in Coordinated Western Action |url= https://www.wsj.com/articles/eu-leaders-agree-to-adopt-sanctions-on-belarus-officials-11601596533 |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |location=New York}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-belarus-election-sanctions-idUSKBN26K2R1|title=Britain and Canada impose sanctions on Belarus leader Lukashenko |newspaper=Reuters |date=29 September 2020 |last1=Ljunggren |first1=Josh Smith}}</ref> [[International sanctions during the Russian invasion of Ukraine|Further sanctions]] were imposed in 2022 following the [[Belarusian involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine|country's role and complicity]] in the Russian invasion of Ukraine; Russian troops were allowed to stage part of the invasion from Belarusian territory.<ref>{{Cite news |date=1 March 2022 |title=Ukraine conflict: UK sanctions Belarus for role in Russian invasion |work=BBC News |url= https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-60580294 |access-date=29 March 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Guarascio |first=Francesco |date=2 March 2022 |title=EU bans 70% of Belarus exports to bloc with new sanctions over Ukraine invasion |work=[[Reuters]] |url= https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/eu-approves-new-sanctions-against-belarus-over-ukraine-invasion-source-2022-03-02/ |access-date=29 March 2022}}</ref> Sanctions were targeted towards not only corporate offices and individual officers of government, but also private individuals who work in the [[state-owned enterprise]] industrial sector.<ref name="efrusi">{{cite news |last1=Ferris |first1=Emily |title=Could Russia's Reliance on Belarus be its Soft Underbelly? |url=https://static.rusi.org/could-russias-reliance-on-belarus-be-its-soft-underbelly.pdf |publisher=The Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies |date=12 January 2023}}</ref> [[Norway]] and [[Japan]] have joined the sanctions regime which aims to isolate Belarus from the international supply chain. Most major Belarusian banks are also under restrictions.<ref name=efrusi/>