In liaison with the Celestial Empire

The comprehensive and all-weather strategic partnership established between Belarus and China allows expanding our co-operation

Our liaison is based on mutual respect, sincerity and friendship. The SCO and BRICS summits, along with major forums and conferences, serve as vital platforms for discussing key areas of Belarusian-Chinese collaboration. What are the specific projects currently underway between our countries?

Joint Belarus-China anti-terror exercise Attacking Falcon was held in July in Belarus      Pavel Bogush

Multi-dimensional interaction 

The co-operation between Belarus and China encompasses various dimensions. Our friendship rests on the relationship between the heads of state Aleksandr Lukashenko and Xi Jinping. High-level agreements have paved the way for collaborative projects that are being implemented in several areas, such as trade, security, transport, education, culture and many others.
As noted by political expert Piotr Petrovsky, the joint Belarus-China anti-terror exercise Attacking Falcon finished at the Brestsky training ground in July. The military men of Belarus’ special operations forces, together with their Chinese colleagues, practiced night landings, overcoming water barriers and conducting combat in a populated area. Such joint drills are not a new experience for Minsk and Beijing: similar exercises took place in Belarus in 2011 and 2015, and in the Celestial Empire in 2012 and 2018. The joint actions of the Belarusian and Chinese military will continue in the future. 
It is symbolic that the current exercise commenced shortly after Belarus had received the status of a full member of the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation at the summit in Kazakhstan on July 3rd-4th. Notably, the drills were held just a few kilometres from the Belarusian-Polish border and from the only operating border crossing, which official Warsaw wanted to close during the visit of Polish President Andrzej Duda to Beijing.
According to political expert Piotr Petrovsky, “Any exercises, especially joint ones, serve not only to train military personnel but also to achieve certain military and diplomatic objectives aimed at warning, demonstrating determination, sending a signal. The joint military drills at the Brestsky training ground and Belarus’ accession to the SCO have clearly illustrated the readiness and irreversibility of the pan-Eurasian security system formation. It is worth noting that the Antiterrorism Interaction-2024 joint exercise held in China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, which involved the special services of the SCO member states and incorporated advanced information and communication technologies, received a high assessment from specialists.” 

Form and content

Piotr Petrovsky stressed that the SCO was initially conceived for security co-operation to address regional security concerns, particularly related to the Afghan issue. Over time, its focus has extended to encompass continental security challenges. The range of issues has also expanded. Now it includes not only the fight against manifestations of terrorism and extremism, but also the eradication of drug trafficking, human trafficking, and the co-ordination of participating countries in preventing disruptions in the global balance of power. The latter aspect is particularly concerning. “NATO’s expansion to the East has become one of the causes of the Ukrainian conflict. Western countries are striving to create a Pacific analogue of the North Atlantic Alliance — the AUKUS bloc, which aims to reinforce Western dominance in the region and deter the SCO member states,” highlighted political expert Piotr Petrovsky.
Given the evolving landscape, there is a pressing need for Belarus and China to deepen their co-operation on security issues. Thus, in addition to regular joint exercises and active interaction between the defence agencies of the two countries, there are tangible results in a military and industrial sector. A notable example is the development and production of Polonez Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) complexes in Belarus.  

Diversity and multipolarity

According to Piotr Petrovsky, the creation of a common security space is driven by the current challenges emanating from the escalating international relations. Belarus and China have found themselves in a situation of intense pressure from the West that opposes to the emerging multipolar world and seeks to preserve its hegemony by all means. However, the real situation indicates a different trend — the countries of the collective East have significantly strengthened recently, and started to beef up their economic and political weight. Notably, the SCO member states now represent more than half of the world’s population and approximately a third of global GDP.
In light of this situation, the priority task on the agenda is to prepare and organise specific mechanisms for the effective functioning of institutions of a multipolar world. To this end, at the Astana SCO summit, official Minsk extended an invitation to all countries to participate in a forthcoming security conference, which will take place in Belarus this autumn, in order to develop the ideas outlined in Minsk’s Charter of Diversity and Multipolarity in the 21st Century. This document aspires to serve as a fundamental value and international declaration of all constructive forces ready to support the emerging new global world order. Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed Moscow’s support for Minsk’s proposal to develop this programme document. China has also shown readiness to join the work, as became known following the recent talks between Belarus’ Foreign Minister Maksim Ryzhenkov and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing. 

Joint Belarus-China anti-terror exercise Attacking Falcon at the Brestsky training ground, Brest Region      Pavel Bogush 

World of new possibilities

Political expert Piotr Petrovsky has noted that the concept of Charter of Diversity and Multipolarity in the 21st Century aligns closely with China’s initiative for Community of Common Destiny for Mankind, designed to establish a balanced and just world order. Official Minsk also supports Beijing’s proposals aimed to resolve the conflict in Ukraine. They make part of Global Security Initiative (GSI), which was put forward by the People’s Republic of China in the spring of 2023. 
In this regard, Petrovsky asserts that Minsk and Beijing are united by a common philosophy of international relations. Our countries reject any kind of duumvirate model, advocating instead for a multipolar world order based on a variety of elements and centres of power. This approach, in particular, implies that no exclusive blocks or closed alliances can guarantee ‘maximum’ security for their members.
A crucial unifying component is the principle of indivisible security.

President of Belarus Aleksandr Lukashenko told Kazinform about this on the eve of the SCO summit in Astana, “I am deeply convinced that genuine and indivisible global security in the 21st century must be built through a broad dialogue, without discrimination, on conditions acceptable to all. You cannot demand safety for yourself while ignoring the safety of others.” 

Piotr Petrovsky concludes that establishing a new security architecture within a multipolar world will serve as a significant impetus for the development of nations.

By Igor Savostenko