BELARUS

· Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park, the remainder of primeval European forest, is a World Heritage Site.

· The oldest city of Belarus is Polotsk, founded in 862 AD.

· The oldest monument in Belarus is St Sophia’s Cathedral (Polotsk), built between 1044 and 1066.

· The longest street in Belarus is Independence Avenue in Minsk (15 km).

Before reading the text match the words from column A with their Russian equivalents from column B.

BELARUS

The Republic of Belarus (Belarus) is located in the Eastern part of Europe. The territory of Belarus is 207 000 square km. It borders on Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Russia and Ukraine. Belarus is divided into six regions (oblasts). The capital of Belarus is the city of Minsk, which is the biggest political, economic, scientific and cultural center of the country.

The population of Belarus constitutes about 10 million people. Representatives of more than 100 nationalities live in Belarus. More than 3/4 of the population is represented by the indigenous Belarusian nation. Significant numbers of Russians, Poles, Ukrainians and other nationalities live in the Republic along with Belarusians. The official languages are Russian and Belarusian.

The climate of Belarus is moderately continental which is favourable for growing grain crops, vegetables and particularly for cultivating potatoes.

The terrain of Belarus is predominantly low hilly and flat. The average height above the sea level is 160 meters. Agricultural lands occupy 45% of the territory, forests account for 36% of the territory. There are more than 20 000 rivers and creeks and about 11 000 lakes in Belarus. The biggest lake is Naroch (about 80 square km).

About 30 kinds of mineral resources have been discovered in Belarus (more than 4 000 deposits and fields of natural resources). The most significant are potassium salts, the deposits of which in the country occupy one of the leading places in Europe. The country is rich in granites, dolomites, chalk, refractory clay, sand and gravel. There are vast reserves of peat.

Belarus is a land of a great historical past and a rich cultural heritage. It is a land of castles and churches, palaces and parks, ancient treasures. Belarus is a motherland of many remarkable people, such as a pioneerin book printing Frantisk Skorina, famous painter Mark Shagal , prominent authors Yanka Kupala and Yakub Kolas. The richness and blend of the culture reflects the complexity of ethnic interactions that have been taking place in this region for hundreds of years.