OREANDA-NEWS. March 11, 2011. National security should be considered not only from the military point of view, State Secretary of the Security Council of Belarus Leonid Maltsev told a roundtable dedicated to the revised version of the national security concept on 11 March.

The State Secretary noted that each country should strive for stability, which needs the balance of interests. He reminded that the previous version of the concept maintained that national security is the security of a person, the society and state from domestic and external threats. The new edition of the concept emphasizes the security of Belarus’ national interests.

Leonid Maltsev explained the need for this adjustment, “An individual, the society and state do not exist separately. National interests is what unites them all.” National interests should be balanced, to this end, there is a need to constantly monitor the situation and provide a prompt response. “The entire legal framework needs to be updated to keep up with the present day situation in the country,” the Security Council State Secretary said.

He emphasized the importance of the national security concept for each person. “The concept implies that each person is not just a cog in a machine, but an active participant of consistent efforts to maintain the national security,” Leonid Maltsev said. He added that in the legal hierarchy the concept is second only to the constitution. It is also important that the concept is a direct application document.

The first concept was adopted in 1995 and adjusted in 2001. The new edition was adopted in 2010. It was proceeded by research carried out by a dozen organizations since 2006.

Speaking about the military dimension, representative of the Security Council Andrei Shalukho noted that Belarus is not facing any military threats now. However, there are some sources of threats that need to be anticipated, monitored and neutralized. One of domestic sources of threats is possible reduction of patriotism among people.

Andrei Shalukho reminded that Belarus is a peaceful country that has been living peacefully for many years. The country has no territorial claims. “The public might start thinking that there will not be any wars and hence no need for army,” he explained. To prevent this way of thinking, we need to boost patriotism in people. This issue is covered by the new edition of the national security concept.