Summary of the year has been an established tradition. Each of the states strives to show the best that has been achieved, and to identify promising areas for implementation next year. In foreign policy, it is equally important to formulate the main issue that characterized the state of affairs in the field of international relations, and to understand the relevance of government approaches to current trends.
Has the world stopped being Western-centric? Many states were looking for an answer to this question in 2024. It fully reflects the depth of the request for the transformation of the system of international relations. Today, it is important to identify markers that indicate the restructuring of the system and can be defined as long-term. There is an exhaustion of the ideological and value narratives of the Western world, the transformation of economic globalization into a vast mechanism of pressure and restraint of the economic development of the majority of participants in the international system, the erosion of international law, and the collapse of trust. Sovereignty, national interests, equal conditions, and the preservation of the diversity of cultures and traditions, in contrast, have become a concentrated reflection of the essence of the expectations of the world community for building a just world order.
In these circumstances, it is also necessary to understand what tools the international system has in order to stop the degradation and move on. As previous experience of the global community emerging from crises shows, only within the framework of international platforms for dialogue is it possible to reach a new level of trust, and consequently, further development.
Sending the UN to the dustbin of history failed. And this is one of the most important indicators that majority of states retain common sense and UN-centric ideological bonds. The SCO and BRICS have become key actors on the global political scene. Following the figurative expression of the Belarusian President, they can "become a dream for many states." Logistics has become a philosophy, and the ITC abbreviation (international transport corridors) has materialized into projects of the future. The battle between multipolarity and Western centrism was gaining momentum, and the scales were clearly tipping in favor of the first concept.
The year 2024 has completed the process of crystallization of Belarus' foreign policy approaches and principles.
Belarusian diplomacy remained true to itself. Its core is continuity, negotiability, balance, and world-centricity. The diplomatic language includes such concepts as equal, mutually respectful dialogue, strategic stability, progressive development, a common space of trust, a diplomatic solution, universal and indivisible security. They form the platform of principles of the Eurasian Charter of Diversity and Multipolarity in the 21st century - the Belarusian vision of the global future. The contribution that our country has made to building the international system after the end of World War II is beyond review. The role of the independent Republic of Belarus within the framework of the United Nations and many other international structures has long been defined as contributing to peace, good-neighborliness and universal development. Belarus has proved that life in the "jungle", as defined in the EU, contrary to expectations, significantly enhances adaptability. The movement towards a multipolar world requires the formation of a new value matrix, clear laws that take into account the interests of all participants as much as possible.
In this regard, the enormous interest of the world community in the SCO and BRICS is proof that many countries are concerned about the same problems as Belarus. Membership of our country in the SCO and BRICS means joining a club of like-minded people who are ready to initiate new ideas and take responsibility for their implementation, to shape the image of the future. Today, the SCO is a convergence of security and development. It unites countries with a territory that makes up more than 65% of the Eurasian continent and a population of over 3.5 billion people, who produce more than a quarter of the world's GDP. The SCO is an international structure with 35 statutory bodies and 45 expert mechanisms for multilateral cooperation. The organization's activities are supported by development strategies. The "Shanghai Spirit" is firmly entrenched in the political lexicon as a platform of trust and coordination of a new quality. The SCO has all the signs of a system-forming core of multipolarity based on the principles of confidence, contractual capacity, movement forward.
Despite the fact that BRICS is not a full-fledged organization, expectations from it are also high. In the context of transforming the global field of meanings, it is important to find a balance between national and universal human values.
The importance of BRICS as a positive point of attraction is increasing almost daily. In the context of radical transformations, the demand for associations that actively shape the development agenda in the form of a strategic image of the future is increasing exponentially. Thus, 2024 in many ways has become a historic year for Belarus. Until recently, our country has been a small part of the historical process; today, it has received the opportunity to create the living fabric of history itself. And this is a huge responsibility.
The system of allied and partnership relations is a key resource of any country in the international arena. The union of Belarus with Russia represents the highest level of integration, which, in principle, is rarely found in interstate relations. The creation of the Union State disrupted the harmonious step of geopolitics, retained the economic laws of development and traditional values. Today, the economic platform created within the framework of the Union State has made it possible to seriously and permanently consolidate the issue of technological sovereignty on the international agenda. In the international arena, allied diplomacy is about balance, precision in decisions and actions, and respect for partners.
Another position is that of the People's Republic of China: by the will of fate, the PRC has become a state to which many countries are turning their eyes. The global economic projects proposed by the Chinese leadership have shown how high the interest in building a new economic architecture is. It was not without difficulties and increased dependence. However, China is ready to adapt different strategies. Belarus has the highest level of relations with China in its foreign policy baggage - an all-weather and comprehensive strategic partnership. As China's top officials have repeatedly stressed, Belarusian-Chinese relations are stable, and at the same time they have not lost their dynamism and focus on opening new growth points.
The Middle East, Africa, Asia, and the regions of Russia have ceased to be distant countries for Belarus. The visits of President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko have transformed the consciousness of Belarusians, filled their daily speech with new words and terms, opened up new niches for enterprises and businesses, routes for travel and recreation. The protocol of the meeting and negotiations was not violated in any country visited by the Belarusian President. This means that completely different players protect peace, order, and preserve diplomatic norms. Belarus has proved with its example that the black-and-white perception of reality is typical only for the West. The demand for consistency, predictability, openness, and responsibility not only persists, but is increasing as well. Our country has done a tremendous job in the international arena over the past four years, especially in 2024. We have once again made sure that we occupy our place in the world. But to preserve it, huge efforts will have to be made to ensure comprehensive security. A multipolar world will not be a panacea for all ills. It will be fiercely competitive, conflictual, and difficult to manage. This will be the main application of the efforts of the Belarusian diplomacy. Whether Belarus is ready for multipolarity is the question of 2025. Belarus is going to build it.