The Republic of Belarus is located in the eastern part of Europe. It covers an area of 207,595 square kilometers. More than nine million people live in this state. It is also a multinational country, with almost one hundred and thirty nationalities. Belarus is a member of the UN, EurAsEC, as well as other international structures. And as a full-fledged state, the country has state borders with its neighbors.
Who does Belarus border with?
The longest state border is from Russian Federation. Its length is about 1280 km. The remaining countries bordering Belarus are Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania and Latvia.
In second place is the border separating Belarus and Ukraine. Length - 1084 km. Belarus borders on the EU states from the west and north. So, its length is 398 km. WITH former republics The USSR has a length: with Lithuania - 678 km; with Latvia - 173 km. The total land border of the Republic of Belarus is 2969 km. The country has no access to the sea.
Modern borders were actually established in 1964 on the basis of a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, which determined the size of the territory of the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic.
The states with which Belarus borders recognize their borders and have no territorial claims.
Russian-Belarusian border
It was formed from the moment Belarus and Russia acquired the status of separate and independent states. Until 1991, it was a conditional dividing line between the union republics Soviet Union. Now this border does not have any border crossing points or any checkpoints. In fact, it exists formally. There are no customs barriers. Of the total 1239 km of this border, it runs on land for 857 km. Along river beds, its length is 362 km. 19 km - along the lakes. Elements of border control on the Belarusian-Russian border were introduced in February 2017 by the Russian Federation. Russia created a border zone to ensure the security of the country.
Large Russian cities bordering Belarus: Velikie Luki, Smolensk, Roslavl, Bryansk. Among the small border settlements are Nevel, Sebezh, Rudnya, Velezh, Klintsy, Surazh.
On the Russian side, the regions bordering Belarus are Pskov, Smolensk, Bryansk.
Also inside the Republic of Belarus, Russia owns the Medvezhye-Sankovo enclave with an area of 4.5 square kilometers.
With most of the states with which Belarus borders, checkpoints have been identified within the framework of the Decree of the President of the Republic of May 10, 2006.
Belarusian-Ukrainian border
Its length is 1084 km. It starts from the junction of the states with the Republic of Poland in the west. And it ends in the east, at the triple junction with the Russian Federation.
Line state border established by an agreement between these former union republics of the USSR dated May 12, 1997. It received state status even earlier, in June 1993.
Until 2017, it existed only nominally. It was free to cross. However, after it was simultaneously broken through by 200 violators from the Ukrainian side, the border on the Belarusian side began to be equipped with engineering barriers. Protective measures were seriously fortified.
Belarusian-Polish border
Has the status of a state border. Its length with the Republic of Poland is almost 399 km. In the north it begins at the triple junction with Lithuania and extends in the south to the border with Ukraine. It is legally defined as the border of the union state of Belarus and Russia with the European Union. Along its entire length it is equipped with engineering protection systems. Security is carried out by the Border Service of the Republic of Belarus.
13 checkpoints have been established with Poland. Of these: 4 - railway; 6 - automobile; 3 - simplified checkpoints.
Currently, work is underway to create another automobile checkpoint.
Belarusian-Lithuanian border
It has a length between the Republic of Belarus and Lithuania of 678 km. In the southwest it begins at the junction with Poland, and in the north it ends at the border with the Republic of Latvia. It is the border of the European Union.
Along its entire length there are 18 crossing points: 2 - railway; 5 - automobile, 11 - simplified passes.
Belarusian-Latvian border
It has a length of 172 km. It starts from the junction with the Russian Federation in the northeast and ends in the north, on the border with Lithuania. It is also part of the demarcation between Belarus and the European Union. Along its length there are 7 crossing points, of which: 1 - railway, 2 - automobile, 4 - simplified entry.
Diplomatic relations have been established and maintained with the countries with which Belarus borders.
IN Lately in some means mass media, primarily on Internet sites, provocative publications appear about the alleged “illegal transfer of primordially Russian territories to the BSSR.” The editors of Snplus asked Leonid Spatkay, a former border guard, reserve colonel, and a man who had deeply studied this topic for many years, to clarify the situation. Based historical facts and documents, avoiding assessments and comments, he told how and when the borders of Belarus changed.
The charter adopted by the BPR Rada on March 25, 1918 stated that “Belarusian People's Republic must embrace all the lands where the Belarusian people live and have a numerical predominance, namely: the Mogilev region, the Belarusian parts of the Menshchina, the Grodno region (with Grodno, Bialystok, etc.), the Vilna region, the Vitebsk region, the Smolensk region, the Chernigov region and adjacent parts of neighboring provinces inhabited by Belarusians" . These provisions were based on the research of Academician E.F. Karsky “On the issue of the ethnographic map of the Belarusian tribe”, published by him in 1902 in the printing house of the Imperial Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg, and the “Map of the Settlement of the Belarusian Tribe” compiled on the basis of this research, published Russian Academy Sciences in 1917
The BPR map was planned to be developed in 1918, but it was published in 1919 in Polish-occupied Grodno as an appendix to the brochure of Professor M.V. Dovnar-Zapolsky “The Basics of Dzyarzhaunasci of Belarus”. Printed in Russian, Polish, English, German and French, the map was presented by the Belarusian delegation at the peace conference in Paris.
This map shows how the BPR border ran.
1. With Russia the passage of the border was argued by the fact that, although the Smolensk and Bryansk lands in different time were both part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and part of the Moscow State, but on almost all maps of the 19th - early 20th centuries. The ethnic border of the Belarusians covered the Smolensk region and the western regions of the Bryansk region. Thus, in the “List of populated places according to information since 1859” it was indicated that among the population of the Smolensk province, Belarusians predominate throughout the province, “Belarusians are especially common in the districts: Roslavsky, Smolensky, Krasninsky, Dorogobuzhsky, Elninsky, Porechsky and Dukhovshchinsky.” Other similar Russian publications also testified that “half of the population of the Smolensk province really belongs to the Belarusian tribe... and in terms of their general natural type most of The Smolensk province is no different from the most typical parts of Belarus, with which it has more similarities than with neighboring provinces.”
2. With Ukraine. Professor E.F. Karsky, German and Ukrainian experts believed that the border dividing the territory of residence of the Belarusian and Ukrainian peoples runs along the border of the Volyn province to the village of Skorodnoye, from which - directly north to Mozyr, Minsk province, from Mozyr - along the Pripyat River, then along its a tributary of the Bobrik River, from the upper reaches of which to Lake Vygonovskoye, and from the lake in a broken line through the cities of Bereza and Pruzhany and north of the cities of Kamenets and Vysoko-Litovsk to the village of Melniki, which is the junction of the borders of Ukraine, Belarus and Poland.
Professor E.F. Karsky, when drawing up his map, used a strictly linguistic approach, and resolved all controversial issues not in favor of the Belarusians. Thus, he excluded the southwestern regions (Polessye territories), in which Ukrainian linguistic features predominated, from the ethnic territory of Belarus. The Belarusian historian, participant in the national movement M.V. Dovnar-Zapolsky, when drawing up his map, used all factors - from linguistic to historical-ethnic, so on his map the southern border of the settlement of Belarusians runs almost the same way as the Belarusian-Ukrainian state border currently passes .
3. With Poland. This border alignment was confirmed by the Krevo and Lublin unions between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland. However, in the 19th century, after the divisions of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, some local residents of the Catholic faith, who called themselves Litvins, not wanting to succumb to Russification, began to call themselves Poles. Another part of the Catholics continued to consider themselves Litvins and called themselves Tuteish. However, according to the 1897 census, the majority of the population of the Grodno province considered themselves Belarusians, with the exception of the Bialystok district, where Poles predominated among the urban population, and among rural population the ratio of Belarusians and Poles was the same.
4. With Lithuania the passage of the border was explained by the fact that most of the territory of present-day Lithuania, including the Vilnius region, on all Western European and Russian ethnographic maps of the late 19th - early 20th centuries. was designated as a Belarusian ethnic territory, the population of which called themselves Litvins, spoke the Belarusian language and considered themselves Slavs. Also, according to the census of the Vilna province of 1897, the majority of its population, with the exception of Troki district, were Belarusians, Lithuanians were in second place, and Poles were in third place.
5. With Courland: from Turmontov northeast of Novo-Alexandrovsk through Illukst to the river. Western Dvina near the Liksno estate, which is 14 versts downstream of Dvinsk.
6. With Livonia: from the Liksno estate, skirting Dvinsk and including it in the territory of the BPR, along the Western Dvina to Druya, from Druya it turns north at a right angle and along the line Dagda - Lyutsin - Yasnov to Korsovka station railway Petrograd - Warsaw. (Currently, the northwestern part of this territory - the former counties of Dvinsky, Lyutsynsky and Rezhitsky - is part of Latvia).
After the liberation of the territory of Belarus and Lithuania from the Germans and the establishment there Soviet power On December 8, 1918, the Bolsheviks proclaimed the formation of the Socialist Soviet Republic of Lithuania (SSRL), which was to include almost all Belarusian ethnic lands. However, in mid-December, the Central Committee of the RCP (b) considered a project to create two Soviet republics - Lithuanian and Belarusian, and on December 24, 1918, decided to create the Soviet Socialist Republic of Belarus (SSRB). The directive of the People's Commissar for Nationalities of the RSFSR dated December 27, 1918 defined its territory: “The republic includes the provinces of Grodno, Minsk, Mogilev, Vitebsk and Smolensk. The latter is controversial, at the discretion of local comrades.”
LitBel: from start to finish
On December 30-31, 1918, the VI North-Western Regional Conference of the RCP (b) was held in Smolensk. The delegates unanimously adopted a resolution: “to consider it necessary to proclaim an independent Socialist Republic of Belarus from the territories of Minsk, Grodno, Mogilev, Vitebsk and Smolensk provinces.” The conference was renamed the First Congress Communist Party(Bolsheviks) of Belarus, who adopted the resolution “On the borders of the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic” (that’s how it is in the document), which stated:“The main core of the Belarusian Republic is considered to be the provinces: Minsk, Smolensk, Mogilev, Vitebsk and Grodno with parts of the adjacent areas of neighboring provinces, populated predominantly by Belarusians. The following are recognized as such: part of the Kovno province of the Novo-Alexandrovsky district, Vileika district, part of the Sventyansky and Oshmyansky districts of the Vilna province, Augustovsky district of the former Suvalkovsky province, Surazhsky, Mglinsky, Starodubsky and Novozybkovsky districts of the Chernigov province. The following districts may be excluded from the Smolensk province: Gzhatsky, Sychevsky, Vyazemsky and Yukhnovsky, and from the Vitebsk province parts of the districts of Dvinsky, Rezhitsky and Lyutsinsky.”
www.sn-plus.com/get_img?ImageId=4393 
Thus, the borders of Soviet Belarus practically coincided with the borders of the BPR, only in the Bryansk region the border should have been closer to the border of the Mogilev province, in the Rezhitsa region - to the west of the BPR border, in the Vilna province - closer to Smorgon and Oshmyany, sections of the border with Poland were also different in the Belsk region and with Ukraine in the Novozybkov region.
The First All-Belarusian Congress of Soviets on February 2, 1919 adopted the “Declaration of the Rights of Working People and the Exploited” - the Constitution of the SSRB, in which the territory of Belarus was defined only as part of the Minsk and Grodno provinces.
However, on February 3, the chairman of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee, Ya.M. Sverdlov, spoke at the congress, who announced the resolution of the Presidium of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee of the RSFSR “On recognition of the independence of the Socialist Soviet Republic of Belarus,” after which he proposed to adopt the Declaration “On the unification of the Soviet socialist republics of Lithuania and Belarus.” The Belarusian Bolsheviks were forced to approve this proposal, and on February 15, the Congress of Soviets of the SSRL, also at the direction of the leadership of Soviet Russia, spoke in favor of the unification of the SSRL and SSRB into a single Socialist Soviet Republic of Lithuania and Belarus (SSRLB, LitBel), which was to become a buffer state between Poland and Soviet Russia, which would exclude open military confrontation between them. Thus, the national-state creation of Belarus was sacrificed to the interests of the world proletarian revolution.
On February 27, 1919, a joint meeting of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR and the Central Executive Committee of the SSRB was held in Vilna, which decided to create the USSRLB with its capital in Vilna. The republic included the territories of Vilna, Minsk, Grodno, Kovno and part of Suvalkovo provinces with a population of more than 6 million people.
On February 16, 1919, the Central Executive Committee of LitBel addressed the Polish government with a proposal to resolve the issue of borders. But there was no answer. The de facto leader of Poland, J. Pilsudski, was obsessed with the idea of restoring the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth as part of Poland, Lithuania, Belarus and Ukraine within the borders of 1772. J. Pilsudski’s maximum program was the creation of a number of national states on the territory of the European part of the former Russian Empire, which would be under the influence of Poland, which, in his opinion, would allow Poland to become a great power, replacing Russia in Eastern Europe.
However, at the peace conference that opened on January 18, 1919 in Paris, a special commission on Polish affairs was created, headed by J. Cambon. The commission proposed establishing the eastern border of Poland along the line Grodno - Valovka - Nemirov - Brest-Litovsk - Dorogusk - Ustilug - eastern Grubeshova - Krylov - west of Rava-Russkaya - east of Przemysl to the Carpathians. This border line was accepted by the Allied Powers after the conclusion of the Treaty of Versailles and published in the “Declaration of the Supreme Council of the Allied and Associated Powers regarding the Temporary eastern border Poland” dated December 8, 1919, signed by the Chairman of the Supreme Council J. Clemenceau.
Despite this decision of the Allied powers, J. Pilsudski gave the order to attack, and on March 2, 1919, Polish troops attacked units of the Red Army, which followed the retreating German troops almost to the line of the eastern border of Poland, determined by the Allied powers.
During the Soviet-Polish war, by the end of September 10, 1919, Polish troops reached the line Dinaburg (Dvinsk) - Polotsk - Lepel - Borisov - Bobruisk - r. Ptich, as a result of which almost the entire territory of the LitBel SSR was occupied, and the republic de facto ceased to exist.
Poland's military successes forced the Bolsheviks to seek a peace treaty with it at any cost. Lenin even offered J. Pilsudski peace “with an eternal border on the Dvina, Ulla and Berezina,” and then this proposal was repeated more than once at the negotiations in Mikashevichi. In fact, the Poles were offered all of Belarus in exchange for a cessation of hostilities.
In December 1919, Polish troops resumed the general offensive, occupying Dvinsk (Daugavpils) on January 3, 1920, which was then transferred to Latvia. Thus, the front was established along the line: Disna - Polotsk - r. Ula - railway Art. Krupki - Bobruisk - Mozyr.
After the resumption of hostilities in July 1920, the Red Army troops, breaking through the front, reached the ethnic borders of Poland. On July 10, the Polish prime minister issued a statement of agreement to recognize the line defined in the “Declaration of the Supreme Council of the Allied and Associated Powers regarding the temporary eastern border of Poland” as the eastern border of Poland. In this regard, on July 12, 1920, the British Foreign Minister Lord Curzon sent a note to the government of the RSFSR, in which he demanded to stop the Red Army offensive on this line. 7 days were given for reflection. The line of the eastern border of Poland was called the “Curzon Line”.
However, the Bolshevik leadership rejected these proposals. A peace treaty was concluded with Lithuania, which recognized its independence “within ethnographic borders.” Obviously, counting on the quick establishment of Soviet power in Lithuania, the leadership of Soviet Russia made significant territorial concessions, including without the consent of the Belarusians into Lithuania a significant part of the Belarusian territory occupied at that time by Polish troops, namely: Kovno, Suwalki and Grodno provinces with cities Grodno, Shchuchin, Smorgon, Oshmyany, Molodechno, Braslav and others. The Vilna region was also recognized integral part Lithuania.
The signing of this agreement meant the actual cessation of the existence of LitBel. On July 31, 1920, in Minsk, the military revolutionary committee issued the “Declaration of the Proclamation of Independence of the Soviet Socialist Republic of Belarus.”
The declaration also contained a description of the borders of the republic: “ western border is determined by the ethnographic border between Belarus and the adjacent bourgeois states,” and the border with Russia and Ukraine “is determined by the free expression of the will of the Belarusian people at the district and provincial congresses of Soviets in full agreement with the governments of the RSFSR and the USSR [Ukraine].” However, in reality, the SSRB was restored only as part of the Minsk province, but without the Rechitsa district and the Belarusian districts of the Grodno and Vilna provinces.
In the final publication of the article, our expert Leonid Spatkai tells how the borders of Belarus changed in the 20s, 30s and 40s and when they acquired their modern form. The Soviet-Polish war ended with the signing of a peace treaty between the RSFSR and the Ukrainian SSR with Poland on March 18, 1921 in Riga - humiliating for Soviet Russia. According to its terms, ethnic Belarusian lands became part of Poland. with total area more than 112,000 sq. km with a population of more than 4 million people, of which about 3 million were Belarusians: Grodno, almost half of Minsk and most of Vilna provinces, i.e. the territories of Bialystochina, Vilna region and the current Brest, Grodno and partly Minsk and Vitebsk regions.
Since the Vitebsk province, in addition to the Rezhitsky and Drissen districts transferred under the peace treaty of the RSFSR with Latvia signed on August 11, 1920, as well as Mogilev and Smolensk remained part of the RSFSR, then territorially the SSRB comprised only six districts of the Minsk province: Bobruisk, Borisov , Igumensky (since 1923 - Chervensky), Mozyrsky, Minsky and Slutsky - with a total area of 52,300 sq. km with a population of 1.5 million people.
In 1923, the issue of returning to Belarus the ethnic Belarusian territories of the Vitebsk province, the Mstislav and Goretsky povets of the Smolensk province and most of the povets created in 1921 as part of the RSFSR from parts of the Minsk, Mogilev and Chernigov provinces of the Gomel province as “relatives to it in everyday, ethnographic and economic relations.” The Vitebsk provincial executive committee, which included practically no Belarusians, spoke out against it, arguing its decision by saying that the population of the Vitebsk province had lost their everyday Belarusian features, and Belarusian language unknown to the majority of the population.
Nevertheless, on March 3, 1924, the All-Russian Central Executive Committee nevertheless adopted a resolution on the transfer of the territory with a predominant Belarusian population to the BSSR - 16 districts of Vitebsk, Gomel and Smolensk provinces. Vitebsk, Polotsk, Sennen, Surazhsky, Gorodok, Drissensky, Lepelsky and Orsha districts of the Vitebsk province were returned to Belarus (Velizhsky, Nevelsky and Sebezh districts remained part of the RSFSR), Klimovichsky, Rogachevsky, Bykhovsky, Mogilevsky, Cherikovsky and Chaussky districts of the Gomel province (Gomel and Rechitsa districts remained within the RSFSR), as well as 18 volosts of Goretsky and Mstislavl districts of the Smolensk province. As a result of the first consolidation of the BSSR, its territory more than doubled and amounted to 110,500 square meters. km, and the population almost tripled - to 4.2 million people.
The second consolidation of the BSSR occurred on December 28, 1926, when the Gomel and Rechitsa districts of the Gomel province were transferred to its composition. As a result, the territory of the BSSR became 125,854 square meters. km, and the population reached almost 5 million people.
The return to the BSSR from the RSFSR and other ethnic territories was expected - almost the entire Smolensk region and most of the Bryansk region. But after the start of the first wave of terror against the national elite, the issue was no longer raised.
The last adjustment of the borders of the BSSR during this period was carried out in 1929: at the request of the residents of the village of Vasilyevka 2nd, Khotimsky district, Mozyr district, by a resolution of the Presidium of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee of October 20, 16 farms of this village were included in the RSFSR.
A significant increase in the territory of Belarus occurred after the so-called. liberation campaign of the Red Army in Western Belarus, which began on September 17, 1939. On November 2, the Law “On the inclusion of Western Belarus into the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and its reunification with the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic” was adopted. As a result, the territory of the BSSR increased to 225,600 square meters. km, and the population is up to 10.239 million people.
However, part of the territory of Western Belarus was almost included in the Ukrainian SSR. The first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine (Bolsheviks) N. Khrushchev made proposals on the border between western regions Ukrainian SSR and BSSR, it was supposed to pass north of the line Brest - Pruzhany - Stolin - Pinsk - Luninets - Kobrin. The leadership of the CP(b)B spoke out categorically against such a division, which became the cause of a fierce dispute between N. Khrushchev and the first secretary of the Central Committee of the CP(b)B P. Ponomarenko. Stalin put an end to this dispute - on December 4, 1939, the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks approved the draft Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on the distinction between the Ukrainian SSR and the BSSR, in which the proposal of the leadership of Belarus was taken as a basis.
On October 10, 1939, an Agreement was concluded between the USSR and the Lithuanian Republic on the transfer to it from the BSSR of Vilnius and part of the Vilna region - Vilna-Troksky district and parts of Sventyansky and Braslav districts with a total area of 6739 square meters. km with almost 457 thousand people. At the same time, a Mutual Assistance Pact was concluded, according to which the USSR stationed Red Army troops of 20 thousand people on the territory of Lithuania. Representatives of the BSSR did not take part either in the discussion of the terms of the treaty, or in negotiations with the Lithuanians, or in the signing of the treaty.
The situation changed again after the proclamation of Soviet power in Lithuania on July 21, 1940. It was decided to transfer to the Lithuanian SSR part of the territory of the BSSR with the cities of Sventsyany (Švenčionis), Solechniki (Šalčininkai), Devyanishki (Devyaniškės) and Druskeniki (Druskininkai). The new Belarusian-Lithuanian administrative border was approved on November 6, 1940 by Decree of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.
Thus, almost the entire Sventyansky district of the Vileika region (with the exception of Lyntunsky, Maslyaniksky and Rymkyansky village councils, which were included in the Postavy district) and most of the Gadutishkovsky district (Komaisky, Magunsky, Novoselkovsky, Onkovichsky, Polessky, Radutsky and Starchuksky) were torn away from Belarus village councils were also included in the Postavy district) with a population of 76 thousand people. After this, the area of the BSSR became 223,000 square meters. km, 10.2 million people lived here.
The next “cutback” of Belarus occurred after the end of the Great Patriotic War, this time in favor of Poland.
On Tehran Conference leaders of the USSR, USA and Great Britain (November 28 - December 1, 1943), the “Curzon Line” was adopted as the basis for the future Soviet-Polish border, and the transfer of the Belarusian Bialystok region to Poland was compensated by the transfer of the northern part to the USSR East Prussia. Thus, the territory of Belarus has again become a “bargaining chip” in big politics. If we proceed from the way some of our neighbors now approach the interpretation of territorial issues, then the results of such an “exchange” give President A. Lukashenko the right to talk about the transfer Kaliningrad region Russia into Belarus or about its transfer to Poland in exchange for the return of Bialystochina to Belarus.
The border proposed by Stalin in July 1944 left the USSR with the entire Belovezhskaya Pushcha and a significant part of the Suvalshchina. However, based on the ethnographic principle, concessions were made in favor of Poland in relation to Suwalki and Augustow. Polish representatives asked to cede part Belovezhskaya Pushcha, located east of the “Curzon Line”, citing the fact that Poland lost a lot of forest during the war, and Belovezhskaya Pushcha was a raw material base for the industry of Gainówka and a Polish national park. As the head of the PCNO, E. Osubka-Moravsky, convinced Stalin: “In the case of Belovezhskaya Pushcha there are no national problems, since bison and other animals have no nationality.” But Stalin decided to transfer 17 districts of the Bialystok region and three districts of the Brest region to Poland, incl. settlements Nemirov, Gaynovka, Yalovka and Belovezh with part of the Pushcha.
The official agreement on the Soviet-Polish border was adopted by the heads of the USSR, the USA and Great Britain at the Yalta Conference in 1945. In accordance with it, the western border of the USSR was supposed to run along the “Curzon line” with a deviation from it in some areas from 5 to 8 km in favor Poland.
Pursuant to the decisions of the Crimean and Berlin Conferences of the Allied Powers, on August 16, 1945 in Moscow, the Prime Minister of the Polish Provisional Government of National Unity E. Osubka-Morawski and the USSR People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs V. Molotov signed an agreement on the Soviet-Polish state border. In favor of Poland, part of the territory located east of the “Curzon Line” to the Western Bug River, as well as part of the territory of Belovezhskaya Pushcha, including Nemirov, Gaynovka, Belovezh and Yalovka, was withdrawn from Belarus, with a deviation in favor of Poland of a maximum of 17 km. Thus, V. Molotov, on behalf of the Soviet Union, gave Poland the original Belarusian lands - almost the entire Bialystok region, except for the Berestovitsky, Volkovysk, Grodno, Sapotskinsky, Svisloch and Skidelsky districts, which were included in the Grodno region, as well as the Kleschelsky and Gainovsky districts with part of Belovezhskaya Pushcha. The Polish side transferred only 15 villages to the BSSR, populated mainly by Belarusians. In total, 14,300 square meters were transferred to Poland from the BSSR. km of territory with a population of about 638 thousand people.
However, the “circumcision” of Belarus did not end there. In particular, at the insistent requests of the Polish government in September 1946, the village of Zaleshany, in which 499 people lived, was transferred to Poland from the BSSR. In total, during the demarcation work in the area, the Poles made 22 proposals to change the border line, many of them were rejected. As a result, 24 settlements with a population of 3,606 people went to Belarus, and 44 settlements with a population of 7,143 people went to Poland.
“Refinements” of the Soviet-Polish border continued until 1955. Several more sections of territory were transferred to Poland and settlements. Thus, in March 1949, 19 villages and 4 farmsteads with a population of 5,367 people were transferred to Poland from the Sopotskinsky district of the Grodno region. In March 1950, 7 villages and 4 hamlets of the Sopotskinsky district, 7 villages of the Grodno region and 12 villages of the Berestovitsky district were transferred from the Grodno region. In exchange, 13 villages and 4 farmsteads were transferred from Poland to the Brest region. On March 8, 1955, as a result of the third “clarification” of the border, 2 villages and 4 farmsteads with a population of 1835 people were transferred from the Sopotska region to Poland, and a few months later, another 26 villages and 4 farmsteads were transferred from the Grodno region to Poland .
In the early 1960s, the border of the BSSR with the RSFSR was also “clarified”. Thus, in 1961 and 1964, as a result of the demands of the local Smolensk Belarusian population, small territories of the Smolensk region were annexed to the BSSR.
The borders of the BSSR were finally established in 1964, when, by Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, a territory with a total area of 2256 hectares with the villages of Bragi, Kaskovo, Konyukhovo, Oslyanka, Novaya Shmatovka, Staraya Shmatovka and Northern Belishchino was transferred from the RSFSR to the BSSR.
👁 Before we start...where to book a hotel? In the world, not only Booking exists (🙈 for a high percentage from hotels - we pay!). I've been using Rumguru for a long time
skyscanner
👁 And finally, the main thing. How to go on a trip without any hassle? The answer is in the search form below! Buy now. This is the kind of thing that includes flights, accommodation, meals and a bunch of other goodies for good money 💰💰 Form - below!.
Really the best hotel prices
The country is located in the central part of Eastern Europe, in the west of the East European Plain. Administratively, Belarus consists of 6 regions, including 112 districts and 12 cities of regional subordination.
Largest cities– Gomel, Vitebsk, Mogilev, Grodno and Brest.
Capital of Belarus- Minsk city.
Borders and area of Belarus
Common border with Lithuania, Latvia, Russia, Ukraine, Poland.
The republic covers an area of 207,600 square kilometers.
Map of Belarus
Timezone
Population
9,468,000 people.
Language
The official languages are Belarusian and Russian.
Religion
82.5% of the believing population are Orthodox, 12% are Catholics, 4% are Muslims.
Finance
The official currency is the Belarusian ruble.
Medical care and insurance
Level of medical care in medical institutions leaves much to be desired. This is due to the lack of highly qualified personnel. Medical care, even in Minsk, is not always high, but nevertheless of sufficient quality. The first visit to the doctor is free, further treatment occurs according to insurance. Medical insurance is recommended for all citizens visiting the republic. Also popular ethnoscience. Ticks are active in forest areas in spring and summer.
Mains voltage
220 volt. Often there are old-style sockets without a grounding contact.
International dialing code of Belarus
👁 Do we book the hotel through Booking as always? In the world, not only Booking exists (🙈 for a high percentage from hotels - we pay!). I’ve been using Rumguru for a long time, it’s really more profitable 💰💰 than Booking.
👁 And for tickets, go to air sales, as an option. It has been known about him for a long time 🐷. But there is a better search engine - Skyscanner - there are more flights, lower prices! 🔥🔥.
👁 And finally, the main thing. How to go on a trip without any hassle? Buy now. This is the kind of thing that includes flights, accommodation, meals and a bunch of other goodies for good money 💰💰.
Loading...