The project of the Union State of Russia and Byelarus: development factors, stagnation, revival

Abstract

This paper analyzes the factors, which have led to Russia and Byelarus signing the Treaty on the Establishment of the Union State, as well as the reasons, why it was not fulfilled and why this idea became relevant now. The Treaty, signed in 1999, is an international legal act. It was supposed to be completed by the adoption of a Constitutional Act, a founding document legally proclaiming the formation of the Union State. The Treaty was preceded by several stages of integration, accompanied by several other treaties and agreements. Its conclusion was the result of a rare coincidence of the will of the people and the political leadership of the countries. This article considers the people as a collective subject of social relations, identifies their goal (self-preservation), the condition for its achievement (self-development) and the main prerequisites for self-development (unity, cultural development, improvement of the quality of life). The author concludes that people felt alien to the divisive ideology of prevailing consumer values, egoism and pride. The people’s ideology is integrational in its nature. Therefore, the two peoples, Byelarussian and Russian, seek unification, which, however, is prevented by the mercantile selfishness of individuals who prefer material values. This is the essence of the conflict between the will of the peoples and the will of the political elites, preventing the unification. Following the signing of the Treaty, the interests of the political leaders of the countries ceased to coincide and thus, the Treaty was not implemented. Since 2018, Russia was no longer satisfied with the current format of relations. This was caused, above all, by the changes in the global economy. Byelarus will inevitably become a member of the Silk Road Economic Belt project (Eurasian Economic Union, EAEU). The new priorities require a guaranteed functioning of the Byelarussian state in the necessary format under clear rules that exclude uncertainty and impulsiveness in decision-making. Therefore, there was a need to limit the capabilities of the Byelarussian institutional bodies. Russia has possibilities and desire to carry out the launched scenario. This is the radical difference of the current situation, which once again opens the prospects for implementing the treaty on the creation of the Union State.