This was made possible by a unique diplomatic decision made at the highest level. The Byelorussian SSR and the Ukrainian SSR became founding members of the UN along with the Soviet Union.

Historical Decision: Recognition of Contributions to Victory

The key decision was made at the Crimean (Yalta) Conference in February 1945. The leaders of the USSR, the USA, and the UK agreed to admit Belarus and Ukraine to the original membership of the new organization.

The main reason was the recognition of the invaluable contribution of the Belarusian people to the destruction of fascism and the enormous sacrifices the republic bore during World War II. As Winston Churchill noted at the conference: \"The sacrifices made by Belarus and Ukraine are known.\"

April 27, 1945 at the founding conference of the UN in San Francisco, all 47 participating countries unanimously voted to include the Byelorussian SSR and the Ukrainian SSR in the number of original members of the organization.

Signing the Charter: Two Belarusians in History

The Charter of the UN was signed in San Francisco on June 26, 1945. Among the 50 founding states was the Byelorussian SSR.

The signature of the document was placed on behalf of the Byelorussian SSR by Kuzma Kiselev, the People's Commissar of Foreign Affairs of Belarus. He remembered how he had to correct an error in the documents: \"I wrote on a piece of paper: Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic.\"

The Charter was signed on behalf of the Soviet Union by Andrei Gromyko, then the head of the Soviet delegation and ambassador to the USA, who was also a Belarusian by origin. Thus, two Belarusians left their signatures under the Charter of the UN.

The Charter of the UN was ratified by the Belarusian parliament on August 30, 1945, and it entered into force on October 24, 1945.

Status of the Byelorussian SSR in the UN: Member with a Vote

Even being a union republic within the USSR, Belarus became a full-fledged founding member of the UN. This gave it important advantages:

• Its own representation and voting rights in the UN General Assembly.
• The possibility of being elected to key UN bodies — the Security Council, ECOSOC, the Human Rights Commission, and others.
• The right to initiate resolutions and international conventions.

Until 1958, Belarus was represented in the UN by diplomats as part of the Permanent Mission of the USSR in New York. And on March 28, 1958, a separate Permanent Mission of the Byelorussian SSR to the UN was established — the first Belarusian overseas institution. The first ambassador was Feodosiy Greznov.

Since then, Belarusian diplomats have actively participated in the work of the UN, proposed their own initiatives, and contributed to international security. As noted by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus Yevgeny Shestakov, this fact \"remains a historical pride for Belarusians and a symbol of our people's responsibility for the fate of the world.\"

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