Are Russia and Belarus one nation, and does Belarusian not exist as a language? No, that's not true: This claim is a myth. Belarus is internationally recognized as an independent country with two official languages: Belarusian and Russian, as stated in the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus.
On February 3, 2023, the claim appeared in a video posted on the TikTok account @rossiyaczar001 (archived here).
The graphic on the video, in Russian, says: "Belarus is Russia. Belarusian language does not exist." The comment seems to refer to the words used by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia, Sergey Lavrov, who, in the video shown, talked about an "artificial implementation of the Belarusian language." Lavrov mentioned the "Belarusization of life," referring, in his own words, to:
the country's activities, by means of a largely, so to speak, artificial implementation of the Belarusian language in all spheres where the Russian language will be supplanted.
(The text has been translated into English from Russian by Lead Stories staff).
Below is how the post appeared on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Thu Jun 8 08:38:57 2023 UTC)
Lavrov made these remarks in August 2020 during his speech at the All-Russian Youth Educational Forum "Territory of Meanings," when talking about the program of Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya.
In 1991, Belarus gained independence following the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Despite joining the Union State with Russia - a supranational partnership aimed at deeper integration in politics, economy, and social cooperation between the two countries - and amidst increasing concerns due to Belarus' key role in supporting Russia's war against Ukraine, Belarus is still regarded as a sovereign state under international law.
According to a report by Chatham House, a distinguished global think tank specializing in international affairs and global issues, the notion that Ukraine and Belarus are sub-nations within a unified community known as the 'triune' or all-Russian nation is an ideological construct that traces its origins back to imperial times. Since the early 2000s, the Kremlin has reproposed the Russo-centric narrative as part of an extensive disinformation campaign. This narrative serves the purpose of legitimizing the perception that Belarus and Ukraine are part of Russia's sphere of influence, thereby suggesting that their independent existence is unsustainable without Russia's control.
