Appeal of the Chairman of the CC CPRF, Head of the CPRF at the State Duma Gennady Zyuganov to the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin and President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko
To: President Putin of the Russian Federation
To: President Lukashenko of the Republic of Belarus
The union of the peoples of Russia and Byelorussia is living through a historic moment. Our centuries-old brotherhood of struggle, victories and joint living is coming under sophisticated attacks from without and from within. The same forces that are wrecking the unity of the peoples of Russia and Ukraine are now carrying out their evil designs in the relations between Russia and Belarus.
We are convinced that a lasting union between our countries is the basis of economic, political and military security, the key element of the security of the members of the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Eurasian Economic Union. This places a special responsibility upon us.
The cynical attack against Byelorussia has been planned for some time. Today it is linked with the September 9, 2020 presidential elections. Its strategic goal is to destroy Byelorussia’s statehood and our union and thus to weaken all the CIS countries and sever their integration ties.
In May of this year I published a manifesto article “The Power’s Russian Core.” It is dedicated to the thousand-year-old brotherhood of the peoples which have become the nucleus of the Russian World, to their outstanding achievements crowned with the great Soviet Era. It also speaks to the tough challenges we ae facing today.
This work is addressed both to the leadership of Russia and to the heads of states united by a common historical destiny and a long-time alliance. The major world catastrophe that was the destruction of the USSR inflicted heavy damage on the Slavic peoples violating their territorial integrity and threatening their political, socio-economic and cultural community.
The stark question we are facing is that of survival, the preservation of civil peace and salvation of our statehood. It is being threatened ever more openly by external enemies led by the political, financial and military elites of the United States. This takes the form of economic sanctions, information warfare, hard political pressure all along the perimeter of our borders. The fate of Russia and all the peoples living on the former Soviet territory depends on the solution of this problem.
The statements and initiatives of the Russian and Byelorussian leaders have repeatedly shown that they are aware of the seriousness of modern challenges. All the patriotic-minded people understand that we can only make an adequate response to them if we rely on the close allied relations and defend our common interests. This aspiration formed the basis of the Russia-Byelorussia Union State. Its creation was the key step towards overcoming the consequences of the ruinous Belovezhskaya collusion of 1991.
Standing in the way of our fraternal aspirations are the selfish interests of transnational capital epitomized by the USA and its NATO allies.Seeking to prevent global capitalism from sinking in a full-scale crisis they are using sundry mechanisms of hybrid wars, broadening their expansion and fomenting managed chaos. The tentacles of this octopus have already got a stranglehold on Ukraine. The Bandera clique was brought to power in Kiev in order to impose economic bondage on the fraternal country, strengthen the anti-Russian alliance in Eastern Europe and form the “Baltic-Black Sea cordon sanitaire.”
Byelorussia is the new target of the globalists. The opponents of the legitimately elected power are to play the same role as the “orange leprosy” in Ukraine. It is not by chance that they have been led to raise the banner which the Nazi authorities already recognized as the official banner on Byelorussia’s territory occupied in 1942. Today we see attempts to steer the people that defied the Nazi invaders along the path of colonization and destruction of the economy and culture. As usual, this is being done under the pretext of making the country part of “the free world.”
Byelorussia has succeeded not only in preserving, but in building on the best of Soviet experience. Over the last quarter century it has been steadily increasing its economic potential. If the anti-national forces, taking their cue from the “mentors” in Washington, Warsaw and Vilnius manage to destroy these unique achievements, this would put an end to the young Byelorussian state. It would also deal a serious blow to Russia’s interests depriving it of a very important and reliable ally on the continent. It would threaten security and stability in the entire Eurasian space.
If we are to prevent these destructive plans from becoming reality it is incumbent upon us to move from declarations and protocols to concrete measures, to urgent decisive actions. They should be aimed at strengthening the Russia-Byelorussia Union as much as possible. There is a pressing need to step up the activities of its institutions in every field. I am convinced that this is the priority task of the Russian authorities. The ways to accomplish this task should be searched together with the Byelorussian leadership. The issue must be discussed at the earliest sessions of the Russian Security Council, the State Duma and the Federation Council. A clear-cut program should be worked out for a political, economic, social, scientific and cultural interaction of the fraternal states in the face of a historical threat.
The CPRF and the popular patriotic forces in Russia are convinced that the action program should include the following measures:
— Making joint sessions of the Russian and Byelorussian governments regular practice. Ensuring effective functioning of the Russia-Byelorussia union parliament. Putting its work on a permanent basis. Setting up a joint fund for the development of the Union State. All the government bodies of the two countries are called upon to work out and implement common strategic and tactical decisions in a timely manner. We are convinced that the parliamentary bodies of our countries can be more active.
– Broadening mutually beneficial economic cooperation. This should be the basis of lasting relations. A calm and objective analysis of the whole range of our trade and economic links is needed. The time is long overdue to resolve the problems in this sphere.
– Maximum strengthening of interaction between the regions of Russia and Byelorussia and twin cities with the creation of a wide network of joint enterprises. This applies above all to such spheres as machine-building, electronics, agriculture, the textile industry, the spheres in which we had been highly successful back in the Soviet years. The accumulated experience should be revived and developed. A convincing example is the Russian-Byelorussian Belkommash-Sibir enterprise for the production of trams created by Novosibirsk communist mayor Anatoly Lokot’.
– Significant increase of places at Russian higher education establishments for students from fraternal Byelorussia. We cannot tolerate the initiative in this sphere slipping out of our hands while Poland is actively enrolling young Byelorussians in its universities. Aggressive actions of the champions of “freedom” under the flag of Nazi occupiers are an eloquent indication of what the universities in Warsaw and Cracow teach. The core of the activists are those who have attended the “course of lectures” by the nationalists who cherish imperial dreams of reviving Rzeczpospolita whose nobles did not consider Byelorussians to be human beings and treated them as rightless slaves.
– Organizing regular internships for talented young scientists at the Russian Academy of Sciences at major science centers in Moscow, Novosibirsk’s Akademgorodok (Science City) and other regions of our country. On-the-job training for Russian specialists at leading Byelorussian enterprises whose successful production and social experience merits being used in Russia. Suffice it to mention the Minsk Tractor Plant which assembles one in every three tractors in Europe and one in every two tractors in Russia.
– Creating Russian-Byelorussian student construction teams to foster links between the young generations of the two fraternal peoples. An excellent example of this kind has been set by the Young Communist League members of Russia, Byelorussia and Ukraine who have experience working on joint construction projects.
– Significant expansion of people diplomacy activities. We need to draw into the integration processes a wide spectrum of social forces in our countries according to the principle: “The stronger the foundation, the stronger the building.” The Russian government should enhance the role of Rossotrudnivhestvo and actively contribute to the implementation of its programs.
–Concerted work of Russia and Byelorussia to combat Covid-19. Coordination of preventive measures should be combined with the provision of Russian-made anti-virus vaccines for all the citizens of the Union State.
– Deepening of defense cooperation. The Army of the Republic of Belarusprovides a reliable shield of its own borders and those of Russia. And this is the most dangerous area. Russia could make more active use of the potential of the high-tech Byelorussian defense industry. While welcoming the course for import-replacement we should be mindful of the fact that the Russian and Byelorussian defense industry complexes have long been deeply integrated.
– Wide use of our cultural potential, common language, traditions, historical achievements. Support of media outlets which contribute to the strengthening of links between our peoples and interstate interaction. We believe that Russia should articulate its position with regard to those media outlets which have the backing of the state and state corporations and side with anti-Russian forces. We believe that Byelroussia too needs to take a closer look at the provocative activities of some media outlets which take a Russohpobic stand.
I urge you, dear Vladimir Vladimirovich (Putin) and Alexander Grigoryevich (Lukashenko) to take adequate measures to remove any obstacles in the way of our relations. To ensure that the huge potential of our cooperation is fully used. There is no doubt that this would have solid support of our peoples, the patriots of Russia and Byelorussia.
Let me stress again: the friendship between Russia and Byelorussia, the strengthening of the young Byelurussian statehood and the Union State as a whole is the guarantee of our common survival and successful development.
We must be aware of the fact that the world is entering a period of political and socio-economic upheavals. They have been triggered by the irreversible crisis of the American project of neo-liberal global expansion. With the United States on the threshold of a veritable civil war, the turbulence is becoming still more dangerous. The presidential elections in the USA may trigger a new spiral. The prospect of collapse of political, financial and economic foundations of global capitalism is emerging on the world agenda. To keep steady at the historical turning point, not to be buried under the rubble of a decrepit system to ensure our independence and development – our peoples can do this only in close alliance with each other.
I would like to remind those who push Byelorussia toward chaos and rehearse the scenario of a Russian Maidan in its cities, humiliate our Motherland, slander our common past, mock our heroic deeds and insult the Russian World: you are playing with fire! The Russians and Byelorussians cherish the ideas of justice. They loathe the principles of greed and gain. As long as the great spirit of Victory is alive in us, we are able rise from any inferno and darkness, overcome any crisis and score new historic victories.
We – Byelorussians, Ukrainians and Russians – have common roots and have achieved great successes together. If we keep our reason and soul no enemies will be able to bury our age-old brotherhood, our unbreakable unity and our worthy future!
Gennady Zyuganov,
Chairman of the CC CPRF,
Head of the CPRF at the State Duma