TheState Border Committee of the Republic of Belarus (Russian:Государственный пограничный комитет Республики Беларусь) is a state security agency that manages theinternational borders ofBelarus. Its armed paramilitary force is known as theBorder Guard Service, carrying out committee orders and policy. The primary tasks of the State Border Committee include:[3] border policy and enhancing border security.
The State Border Committee of the Republic of Belarus traces its history back to the troops that oversaw the border with theGerman Empire in 1918 and the formal creation of theSoviet Border Troops in the same year.[6]
In 1939, a border with Germany was established, but the previous Polish-Soviet border was not liquidated. Upon theGerman invasion of the Soviet Union, approximately 16,000 of the 20,000 border troops became casualties in the first days of the war.[7] The service was essentially recreated from scratch in 1944.[6]
On September 20, 1991, theSupreme Soviet of the Republic of Belarus passed legislation subordinating the border troops to itself, effectively creating a national service. Most of the legislation governing the service was adopted by August 1993. From 1994 to 1997, the first border units were formed and deployed, and agreements were made with neighboring countries to facilitate cooperation between their respective border troops. On January 11, 1997, PresidentAlexander Lukashenko signed a decree renaming the General Directorate to the State Committee of the Border Troops.[8]
On September 18, 2020, the committee announced it had tightened border security withPoland andLithuania, calling up reserves to patrol the borders although Poland and Lithuania said their borders with Belarus remained open.[9]
Belarusian Border Guards patrolling the Poland-Belarus border with working dog.
After the start of theBelarus–EU border crisis, the leadership of the State Border Committee, including its chairman Lappo, was included in the sanctions lists of the European Union,[10] the United States[11] and Canada[12][13] on December 2, 2021. Switzerland joined the EU sanctions on December 20.[14]
^"О назначении Е.П.Ковалева" [On the Appointment of E. P. Kovalev].normativka.by (in Russian). President of Belarus. September 24, 1996. Archived fromthe original on August 3, 2025.
^"Об освобождении Е.П.Ковалева" [On the Dismissal of E. P. Kovalev].etalonline.by (in Russian). President of Belarus. June 9, 2006. Archived fromthe original on August 3, 2025.
^"О назначении В.Ю.Зайцева" [On the Appointment of V. Yu. Zaitsev].etalonline.by (in Russian). President of Belarus. April 10, 2007. Archived fromthe original on August 3, 2025.
^"О назначении В.Ю.Зайцева" [On the Appointment of V. Yu. Zaitsev].etalonline.by. President of Belarus. July 15, 2008. Archived fromthe original on August 3, 2025.
^"О назначении А.Г.Горулько" [On the Appointment of A. G. Gorulko].normativka.by. President of Belarus. August 29, 2008. Archived fromthe original on August 3, 2025.
^"О назначении А.В.Загороднего" [On the Appointment of A. V. Zagorodny].normativka.by (in Russian). President of Belarus. August 2, 2012. Archived fromthe original on August 3, 2025.
^"О назначении И.Е.Буткевича" [On the Appointment of I. E. Butkevich].etalonline.by (in Russian). President of Belarus. April 12, 2013. Archived fromthe original on August 3, 2025.
^"Об И.Е.Буткевиче" [About I. E. Butkevich].normativka.by (in Russian). President of Belarus. August 21, 2024. Archived fromthe original on August 3, 2025.
^"Об А.В.Филатове" [About A. V. Filatov].normativka.by (in Russian). President of Belarus. 21 August 2024. Archived fromthe original on August 3, 2025.
