Paris Peace Conference of 1919–1920 and Prospects of the Belarusian Statehood

Abstract

One of the most important outcomes of the First World War was the collapse of empires that existed in Central and Eastern Europe. The Entente countries and the United States at the final stage of the war put forward the slogan of the right of nations to self-determination. This created prerequisites for building of their statehood by a number of peoples of the region. Belarusians were among them. The BPR (Belarusian People's republic) and SSRB were proclaimed. The process of formation of the Belarusian national statehood took place in the context of new system of international relations formation and its success largely depended on foreign policy conditions. The main elements of a new international order for Europe were laid down at the Paris Conference. The "Belarusian" question did not receive an independent sound in Paris. The interests of Belarus were touched upon when the participants of the conference discussed "Polish" and "Russian" issues that were closely related to each other. The problem of defining the Polish eastern borders was of crucial importance for Belarus. The Entente states stood for the formation of an independent Polish state within ethnic borders. This created prerequisites for preserving the territorial integrity of Belarus. However, the Polish ruling circles overcame the negative attitude of the Entente towards the expansion of Poland beyond its ethnic borders with the help of a fait accompli policy. At the same time, the Poles positioned the concept of the federation in front of the Entente as realization of the right of the "Eastern Kresy" peoples, including Belarusians, to self-determination. The Polish expansion to the east did not meet real opposition from the Entente, as it was interested in Poland as an anti-Bolshevik force, an element of the "sanitary cordon". The BNR delegation, which arrived in Paris, did not find support from Western politicians in recognizing the independence of the Belarusian state. The decisions of the Paris Conference provided for the preservation of the integrity of Belarus, but not as an independent state, but as part of Russia.