Today Belarus is at the crossroads – how should it develop further. It is obvious that the model of providing would-be “prosperity” at the expense of free resources from Russia and Russia’s inner market is not going to work anymore. It’s time to pay the bills. The situation is being worsened by the world economic crisis, which haven’t passed by Belarus as well.

 Under the pressure of economic factors Lukashenka’s power is getting weaker and now it has to look for a way to modernize itself while keeping all the privileges and monopoly on power in our country. The next few years will show us both the results of these efforts and the real competence of current Belarusian power and state apparatus.

 Changes are inevitable in any case. At the same time there’s an acute problem of successors’ competence – the Belarusian elite. Representatives of opposition parties and movements, due to specifics of their development during the last decade, are capable of assuming such functions and executing them effectively only at a very limited scale. The current political elite, if it happens to be without Lukashenka in its lead at a certain period of time, will be incapable of ensuring stability in the country and hardly competitive as a political force. It is destined to be stuck in conflicts between different clans and, later, to be bent in the will of powerful outside forces which will come to Belarus after Lukashenka’s era comes to an end.

 In this situation the Third Way community evaluates adequately its strengths and potential, and tries not only to maximize its participation in superseding current political elites in Belarus, but also tries to prepare beforehand a cohort of young professionals who are relying on their own long-term project of Belarus’ future. This project’s foundation is to be the mission of the Third Way which would contribute to modernization of Belarus into a successful and competitive country with the priority of liberal values. Competent new elite for Belarus – in our opinion, this is what prevent after-Lukashenka Belarus from becoming Kremlin’s or Brussels dominion, a failed state under foreign administration.

 We don’t do populism and we don’t make such deliberately unrealizable proclamations as establishing a new liberal party. In Lukashenka’s Belarus it is possible only under his first-hand approval. We are working in the sphere of maximizing our human and analytical potential, informational influence and partner and lobbyist contacts in the West and in Russia. We do that in order to be capable of something more than merely registering a political party during post-Lukashenka transformation. We want to actually influence the vector of our country’s development. 

 On this stage of our development we place the highest emphasis on human capital by engaging younger generation of Belarusians from our country and the Diaspora into joint projects and activities, able to fulfill their potential and keep faith in future changes in our country, to build belief in that these changes will be done by them. We are paying high attention to increasing cultural, educational, and professional level of our people, as well as their national awareness.

 In order to communicate effectively with a broad audience of young people in Belarus and the Diaspora, we are creating effective forms of communication with them, which are capable of both providing information and opportunities, and being a ground for their self-actualization.

 On August 21, 2009 is the fifth birthday of our community. We are happy that we celebrate it with new friends of our community who are ready to become volunteers and activists. We believe in the diversity of forms, creativity and principle stance on our beliefs – this is the key to motivating young Belarusians, opportunity for awakening them to make positive changes in our country.