RUSSIAN SOFT POWER AS AN INSTRUMENT OF INFLUENCE ON BELARUS

The aim of this paper is to provide a comprehensive overview of the specific ways in which the Russian Federation has made use of soft power in its relations with Belarus beyond 1991. Since then, in the wake of the recent presidential elections, there has been remarkable progress in the development of Russian soft power instruments, both in terms of their diversity and the innovativeness of their distribution channels. Concurrently, however, the number of groups for whom Russian soft power would be a compelling and competitive alternative to Western soft power is rapidly diminishing as a result of the evolution of identity processes, a shift in media preferences, or an influx of political refugees. The primary research question is as follows: what are the principal axiological and institutional sources of Russian soft power applied in Belarus, and what instruments fall within its scope? The methods employed in this study included qualitative and quantitative, historical, systemic, literature analysis and criticism, and content analysis.