Republic of Belarus

Respublika Belarus

CAPITAL: Minsk

FLAG: Two horizontal bands of red (top) and green, with the red band twice as wide as the green. At the hoist is a vertical band showing a traditional Belarusian ornamental pattern.

ANTHEM: Maladaya Belarus.

MONETARY UNIT: The Belarus ruble (BR) circulates along with the Russian rouble (R). The government has a varying exchange rate for trade between Belarus and Russia. BR1 = $0.0004938 (or $1 = BR2025) as of May 2003.

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES: The metric system is in force.

HOLIDAYS: New Year's Day, 1 January; Orthodox Christmas, 7 January; International Women's Day, 8 March; Labor Day, 1 May; Victory Day, 9 May; Independence Day, 27 July; Day of Commemoration, 2 November; Christmas, 25 December.

TIME: 2 PM = noon GMT.

Location, Size, and Extent

Belarus is a landlocked nation located in eastern Europe, between Poland and Russia. Comparatively the area occupied by Belarus is slightly smaller than the state of Kansas, with a total...