Nikolai Statkevich Spoke About Real Belarusian Officers
- 12.10.2026, 10:44
The BZV's founding convention took place 35 years ago.
Belarusian opposition leader and former political prisoner Nikolai Statkevich recalls in Telegram about the legendary organization Belarusian Military Union (BZV), which was at the very origins of the army of independent Belarus:
— The Belarusian Military Union (BZV) was founded on August 19–20, 1991, in Minsk during the August 1991 coup. And on October 12–13, 1991—35 years ago—the founding congress of the public organization took place, which defined the BZV’s goals: defending Belarus’s independence, creating a Belarusian army, and fostering historical and patriotic education among the public.
Dozens of Belarusian officers from all corners of the former Soviet Union took part in the congress.
The congress gave a powerful impetus to the organization’s development. BZV cells sprang up in garrisons throughout Belarus. And the ceremony held on September 8, 1992, on Independence Square in Minsk, during which participants swore an oath of allegiance to Belarus, made it possible to form BZV units composed of reserve military personnel in all districts of the capital.
The BZV succeeded in establishing the Belarusian Army, initiated the creation of the Anti-Crisis Committee comprising all the country’s major political forces to defend independence, organized the writing and publication in newspapers—with a combined circulation of 1.5 million copies—of a brief overview of Belarus’s previously banned military history, *Forgotten Glory*, and regularly held mass celebrations of the dates of our ancestors’ military victories.
This made a strong impression on the government, and the plan to introduce a foreign currency was abandoned. However, the Supreme Soviet subsequently decided to amend the law “On the Status of Military Personnel,” under which military personnel were prohibited from engaging in any “socio-political” activities—a provision interpreted by the authorities not only as a ban on participation in political parties but also on involvement in any civic organizations. Even “dog breeders’ clubs,” as they put it.
As a result, patriotic officers were forced to choose between military service and membership in the BZV. What is most regrettable is that these amendments to the law were supported by the BNF faction. I still do not understand the motives behind the leadership of this party’s decision to help the Kebich government crack down on the officers’ patriotic organization. Could it really have been due to mere jealousy over the growing popularity of a civic organization?
It was no coincidence that the then-Minister of Defense, Kozlovsky, in the presence of an officers’ assembly at the Military Academy, joyfully shouted at me across the entire hall: “The BNF has betrayed you!” To prevent the dismissal of its comrades from the army, the BZV leadership decided to terminate the membership of all career officers in the organization, with the exception of the organization’s chairman. As a result, the BZV was left without its experienced core members and without a presence in the army.
The organization suffered a severe blow. Later, in early 1994, due to its members’ participation in providing security for a workers’ strike, it was stripped of its legal registration. It was subsequently re-registered under a different name.
During the first presidential election, BZV activists organized a Public Monitoring Commission, which brought together representatives of all opposition candidates and prevented widespread election fraud.
Throughout its brief yet remarkable history, the BZV has done a great deal for Belarus and its independence. Perhaps this is because, unlike similar organizations in neighboring former Soviet republics, it was founded and led not by military personnel resentful of their superiors, but by successful officers who were driven, above all, by a love for our country and a desire to see it free and independent.