Editing Belarus (section)

===Military===
{{Main|Armed Forces of Belarus}}
[[File:RIAN archive 1047080 Work of "Kamenyuki" frontier post on Belarus border with Poland.jpg|thumb|Soldiers patrol in the [[Białowieża Forest]] on the Belarusian border with Poland]]
Lieutenant General [[Viktor Khrenin]] heads the Ministry of Defence,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mil.by/en/forces/squad|title=Leaders|access-date=18 March 2015|year=2015|publisher=Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Belarus|archive-date=2 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180602031529/http://www.mil.by/en/forces/squad/}}</ref> and Alexander Lukashenko (as president) serves as Commander-in-Chief.<ref name="conby"/> The armed forces were formed in 1992 using parts of the former [[Soviet Armed Forces]] on the new republic's territory. The transformation of the ex-Soviet forces into the Armed Forces of Belarus, which was completed in 1997, reduced the number of its soldiers by 30,000 and restructured its leadership and military formations.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mod.mil.by/7okrugarmia.html|title=History|access-date=22 December 2007|year=2006|publisher=Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Belarus|language=ru|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071217010640/http://www.mod.mil.by/7okrugarmia.html|archive-date=17 December 2007}}</ref>

Most of Belarus's service members are [[conscription|conscripts]], who serve for 12 months if they have higher education or 18 months if they do not.<ref>Routledge, [[International Institute for Strategic Studies|IISS]] Military Balance 2007, pp. 158–59</ref> Demographic decreases in the Belarusians of conscription age have increased the importance of contract soldiers, who numbered 12,000 in 2001.<ref name="conscripts">{{cite web|url=http://mdb.cast.ru/mdb/5-2001/dp/mdafb|title=Military Development and the Armed Forces of Belarus|access-date=9 October 2007|last=Bykovsky|first=Pavel|author2=Alexander Vasilevich|date=May 2001|work=Moscow Defense Brief|archive-date=5 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180705204122/http://mdb.cast.ru/mdb/5-2001/dp/mdafb/}}</ref> In 2005, about 1.4% of Belarus's gross domestic product was devoted to military expenditure.<ref name="ciabymil">{{Cite CIA World Factbook|country=Belarus|section=Military and Security|access-date=9 October 2007|year=2007}}</ref>

Belarus has not expressed a desire to join [[NATO]] but has participated in the Individual Partnership Program since 1997,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mfa.gov.by/en/foreign-policy/multilateral/c21ec980e0def482.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071130171113/http://www.mfa.gov.by/en/foreign-policy/multilateral/c21ec980e0def482.html |archive-date=30 November 2007 |title=Belarus and NATO|access-date=9 October 2007|year=2002|publisher=Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus}}</ref> and Belarus provided refueling and airspace support for the [[International Security Assistance Force]] mission in [[Afghanistan]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mfa.gov.by/en/organizations/membership/list/c6eaf2b20c037582.html|title=North Atlantic Treaty Organization|access-date=30 April 2010|year=2009|publisher=The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus|archive-date=16 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140816094259/http://mfa.gov.by/en/organizations/membership/list/c6eaf2b20c037582.html}}</ref> Belarus first began to cooperate with NATO upon signing documents to participate in their Partnership for Peace Program in 1995.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mfa.gov.by/en/press/news_mfa/c6f560f2f8d745ee.html|title=NATO Council adopted individual partnership program with Belarus|access-date=30 April 2010|date=11 March 2002|publisher=The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus}}</ref> However, Belarus cannot join NATO because it is a member of the CSTO. Tensions between NATO and Belarus peaked after the March 2006 presidential election in Belarus.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ru.forsecurity.org/nato-and-belarus-partnership-past-tensions-and-future-possibilities|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020091957/http://ru.forsecurity.org/nato-and-belarus-partnership-past-tensions-and-future-possibilities|archive-date=20 October 2013|title=Nato and Belarus: partnership, past tensions and future possibilities|access-date=25 November 2010|date=21 November 2010|author=Laurie Walker}}</ref>