According to a growing number of pro-Kremlin commentators, the spectre haunting Belarus is the threat of “Belarusization,” meaning the promotion of the Belarusian language, history, and culture.

For Lukashenko, there was nothing contrived about the commemoration -- he told a vast sports arena of supporters that historical memory underpinned the nation.

The new agreements – 28 in all – were known in advance but clinched at talks last week in Moscow between Lukashenko and Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin.