Last summer I traveled to Belarus, visiting three major cities – Minsk, Mogilev and Homel – and several villages, and meeting with Ukrainian community representatives from another major city, Brest. I was surprised by the relative sophistication of the Belarus infrastructure, beginning with the Minsk airport, the national airline Belavia, the major arteries across the country, general cleanliness, gardening, etc. Nevertheless, I left the country largely dismayed and pessimistic as to the future because of the obvious Russian presence everywhere, the pervasive Russian language and Moscow Church Orthodoxy, the feeling of submission and apathy as to their own fate of the Belarusian people.