Abstract
This article examines the response of regional elites in Soviet Belarus to the new nationalities policy introduced by Lavrentii Beria in his bid for power after Stalin’s death in 1953. The scenario, which had successfully played out in Ukraine, Lithuania and Latvia, was resisted by Belarus, where Russian First Secretary Nikolai Patolichev remained in post, despite Moscow’s orders. A key role in this was played by the republic’s regional secretaries. Their unwillingness to denounce their patron highlighted the emerging importance of regional networks and set an important precedent for the post-Stalin relationship between Moscow and the ethnic periphery.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 387-409 |
Number of pages | 23 |
Journal | Europe-Asia Studies |
Volume | 73 |
Issue number | 2 |
Early online date | 19 Oct 2020 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 19 Oct 2020 |
Keywords
- Belarus
- Soviet
- Soviet nationality policy
- Beria
- De-Stalinisation
- Soviet republics
- Patolichev
- Belarusian Communist Party
- Soviet regional secretaries
- 2020