What is your manual?
Vyacheslav Danilovich: This is, in fact, a brief overview of the history of Belarus from antiquity to the present day, which is based on the concept of the history of the Belarusian state developed by scientists from the Institute of History of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus with academic colleagues. Acquaintance with the publication allows you to get a comprehensive view of the history of Belarusian lands and the Belarusian state, introduces the main features and achievements of Belarusian culture. We are very grateful to our Russian partners for the joint preparation and publication of this publication.
Oksana Solopova: On my own behalf, I would add that writing became possible thanks to the ties established as a result of many years of systemic cooperation between the main educational and scientific centers of our countries – the Academy of Public Administration under the leadership of the President of the Republic of Belarus, the historical faculties of BSU and Moscow State University and the Institute of Eurasian and Interregional Studies of the Russian State University of Humanities.
And what has prevented its appearance all these years?
Vyacheslav Danilovich: We wanted this textbook to be prepared on the basis of the latest national concept of national history, jointly developed by Belarusian university and academic historians.
This process started 15 years ago. The development and testing of the concept took a long time. Its main provisions were presented by me at the first Russian-Belarusian Forum of Historians, which was held in Moscow on June 2-3 this year. Our concept has been positively evaluated by Russian colleagues.
Oksana Solopova: Systematic interaction between the Faculty of History of Moscow State University and Belarusian colleagues, which after the collapse of the USSR began again in 2008, our numerous joint projects allowed us to achieve this unambiguous height for ourselves. This textbook, despite its small volume, is in fact the concept of Belarusian history education, developed by Russian and Belarusian historians as a single vision. One hundred pages of this edition will serve as a basis or will be taken into account in the preparation of subsequent editions on Belarusian studies. They will be developed or challenged, but precisely within the framework of a common vision – not as a compromise, which is unacceptable in science, not as bifurcation points, but as a Möbius ring in its infinity. And most importantly, this work showed that for the Russian-Belarusian team there are no closed historical topics and intrigues. We can work together to understand all historical periods and all facts.
Our training manual aims to resist attempts to distort and falsify history
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p class=””>And how did you work remotely? Have there been controversies and scientific discussions?
This textbook is, in fact, the concept of teaching Belarusian history. Photo: Faculty of History of Moscow State University
Vyacheslav Danilovich: Despite the distance, we worked with a great sense of responsibility and with pleasure. Of course, we discussed, but we certainly found a consensus, because we were well aware of the importance of this publication for the State of the Union of Belarus and Russia, and because it allows, undoubtedly, to the Russian youth to know and understand Belarus. better. Youth is our future, and without a clear understanding of the historical past, that future simply cannot exist. This is why the collective West is so eager to distort and falsify the history of Belarus and Russia. Our manual aims, among other things, to counter these attempts at distortion and falsification.
Oksana Solopova: Over the years of cooperation, we have managed to agree on many complex and controversial issues of historical science. We discussed, yes, but we didn’t discuss. Because we saw a common goal and went for it. This objective was to systematize the basic historical facts and to trace the vectors and trajectories of the development of the historical thought of the students. But the work on the textbook also became for us a point of growth, an increase in professional qualifications, forcing us, in fact, to reach a new level of understanding of the need to form common methodological principles and historical approaches in Russian and Belarusian. historians, to fill historical concepts and terms with clarified content…
The table of contents indicates the period under study – until 2020. And the period after?
Vyacheslav Danilovich: A historical analysis of contemporary events takes time. But I am sure that this will certainly happen thanks to the joint efforts of Belarusian and Russian historians.
Oksana Solopova: I will only add that the first edition of our textbook was published in the series “Proceedings of the Faculty of History of Moscow State University”. Already this year it will be published as the second edition of another recognizable and authoritative series “Proceedings of the Institute of Eurasian and Interregional Studies” of the Russian State University of Humanities. And the first edition will be introduced into the educational process of Moscow University and the Russian State University of Humanities from the academic year 2023-2024.
Where and when is your study guide scheduled to be presented? Will there be an electronic version?
Oksana Solopova: I’ll start by answering the last question. Yes, we are preparing an electronic version of the training manual. And we plan to hold a presentation of our publication at the X Anniversary Forum of the Regions of Russia and Belarus, which will be held from June 26 to 28, 2023 in the city of Ufa. This opportunity for us is both a great honor and a great responsibility. The fact that in recent years the Forum has attached great importance to the humanitarian component is extremely important for our interaction. Thus, it was within the framework of the VI Forum of Regions, held in St. Petersburg, that the rectors of the Moscow State University named after MV Lomonosov and the Belarusian State University VA Sadovnichim and AD Le king signed the first-ever international Russian-Belarusian master’s program “History of the Belarusian Diaspora”, the students of which, citizens of the Russian Federation and Belarus, receive two diplomas from the main universities of the Union State in two years of study. Thus, the historians of the two countries make their concrete contribution to the formation of the common humanitarian space of the Union State and raise their successors through joint efforts.
Oksana Vyacheslavovna, you are the founder and director of the laboratory of the history of diasporas and migrations of the history department of Moscow State University, first vice-president of the Council of the FNKA of Belarusians of Russia. In my opinion, one of the brightest representatives of public diplomacy in the state of the Union. Is the Belarusian diaspora in Russia something unique?
Oksana Solopova: Thank you for such a high rating. The Belarusian diaspora in Russia is not only the largest in comparison with other states of the world where Belarusians live today. Leaders and activists of Belarusian public associations in Russia fill its activities with their ideas. And the words that you so laudatory to me can be equally attributed to each of them… The potential and resources of the Belarusian diaspora in Russia – this happened thanks to the personal example of the President of the FNCA Belarusians of Russia SL Kandybovich – is determined by the professional abilities of each of us. And the legal framework of the state, which, to be honest, became possible due to the existence of the State of the Union, the activities of its Standing Committee, the decisions of the Council under the leadership of the President of the Russian Federation on interethnic relations, cooperation with the Advisory Council of Belarusians Abroad of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus, our embassies… Missionary consciousness or we have no ambition. There is simply love for Russia and Belarus. And that determines everything.
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