Belarus () (Belarusian and Russian: ????????, transliteration: Byelarus?) is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, that borders Russia to the north and east, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the north. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno, Gomel, Mogilev, Vitebsk and Bobruisk. A third of the country is forested, and agriculture and manufacturing are its strongest economic sectors. Until the 20th century, the Belarusians lacked the opportunity to form their national policy, as the lands of modern-day Belarus belonged to several countries, including the Duchy of Polatsk, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and the Russian Empire. After the short-lived Belarusian People's Republic (1918?19), Belarus became a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Byelorussian SSR. The final unification of Belarusian lands

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