[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 35 (Thursday, March 24, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: March 24, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                      BELARUSIAN INDEPENDENCE DAY

 Mr. SIMON. Mr. President, Sunday, March 27 marks the 76th 
anniversary of the Proclamation of Independence of the Republic of 
Belarus. I am honored to share in the celebration of Belarusians 
throughout the world.
  The Republic of Belarus declared its independence from the Soviet 
Union in 1991, and since then has fought to establish itself and its 
identity as a solid democracy in the heart of Eastern Europe.
  The citizens of Belarus cannot forget their forebearers' efforts to 
establish political and economic independence in 1918, amidst the chaos 
surrounding the Bolshevik takeover in Russia. Tragically, the country 
was overrun by the Red Army and forced to join the Union of Soviet 
Socialist Republics. However, with the dissolution of the Soviet Union 
in 1991, Belarus was one of the first former Soviet republics to 
receive official diplomatic recognition by the United States--on 
December 25, 1991--and the first foreign mission to open in the capital 
city of Minsk was that of the United States.
  I do not need to remind my colleagues of the incredible suffering the 
people of Belarus have sustained as a result of fallout from the 
Chernobyl nuclear disaster in neighboring Ukraine. Although the Soviet 
Union is gone, problems remain with how to safely dispose of former 
Soviet nuclear weapons and how to provide energy needs without using 
unsafe nuclear reactors. Recognizing these dangers, the United States 
and the new government of Belarus negotiated an agreement to facilitate 
the dismantling of Belarus' portion of the former Soviet nuclear 
stockpile. The United States is also working to ensure that Chernobyl 
is not repeated. I applaud the Belarusian government's leadership and 
cooperation on these issues.
  Many of the freedoms that we as Americans take for granted are rights 
that the people of Belarus still struggle to realize. There exists in 
Belarus today a dedicated core of reformers who continue to struggle 
against the forces of an entrenched Communist bureaucracy. Recently, 
the Parliament of Belarus replaced the old, Soviet-era constitution 
with a new document, one that seeks to end fully all Belarusian ties 
with its former Communist past. I support the reformers' efforts and 
congratulate them on their successes. I hope that the United States can 
continue to strengthen its political, economic, and cultural ties with 
Belarus. Increased interaction will help to consolidate the U.S. 
relationship with Belarus--founded on shared values and common 
interests, and aided by the concerns and activism of many Americans of 
Belarusian descent.
  I congratulate the people of Belarus on their Independence Day and 
want to express my support for their efforts to realize the potential 
of their newly found political and economic freedoms.

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