C) all of the above

Text 1

Reading

Pre-reading

Useful vocabulary

Use a dictionary to check the meaning and pronunciation of these words.

abundance n account v aggregate v annual a arable a astonishingly adv attach v attributable a average a barely adv boundary n census n comprise v conservation n contribute v deplete v elevate v emerge v encounter v enhance v enterprise n

equal a estimate v exclude v extraction n fertilizer n frequently adv involvement n irrelevant a maintain v marshland n measure n notable a peat n performance n personnel n plain n plentiful a potash n potassium n precipitation n private a

proficiency n rank v release v reside v resist v robust a share n significant a soil n staple a steady a subsequent a succeed v sufficiently adv surface n surplus n timber n transition n valley n valuable a vehicle n

2. Make sure you know the following acronyms and can translate them into Russian:

CIS- Commonwealth of Independent States;

EBRD- European Bank for Reconstruction and Development;

FDI- foreign direct investment;

FEZ- Free Economic Zone;

GDP- Gross Domestic Product;

IMF- International Monetary Fund;

IT- information technology;

JSC- joint-stock company;

LLC- limited liability company;

NBRB- the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus;

OECD- Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development;

VAT- value added tax.

Answer these questions and discuss them in small groups before you read texts below.

1. Where is Belarus situated?

2. How does Belarus rank among the countries of the world in population and area?

3. How many nationality groups are there?

4. Can you describe the details of your local folklore?

5. What are the official languages of Belarus?

6. What Belarusian places of interest do you know?

7. Is our country rich in history?

8. When did Belarus proclaim its independence?

9. How is the President elected?

10. What do you know about the government of the country?

11. What are the major problems facing Belarus?

1. Read the text attentively and explain the meanings of the words in bold type.

GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE STATE

The Republic of Belarus is located in the center of Europe. It consists of six regions with centres in the cities of Minsk, Brest, Vitebsk, Gomel, Grodno, Mogilev, which are further divided into 118 rural districts, 102 towns and over 24 thousand townships and villages. In the capital of the Republic, the city of Minsk, there live around 2 million people.

The Republic of Belarus is a unitary, democratic, social state with the rule of law. It admits the priority of generally acknowledged principles of international law and assures the conformity of legislation with them.

The Constitution of the Republic of Belarus is the Fundamental Law of the Republic of Belarus, having supreme legal force. It was adopted in 1994, with the subsequent amendments and additions adopted at the national referenda on November 24,1996, and October 17, 2006. Laws of the Republic of Belarus, ordinances of the President of the Republic of Belarus, decrees of the President of the Republic of Belarus and other acts of state bodies (officials) are adopted and enacted in compliance with the Constitution.

The state power is exercised on the basis of its division on legislative, executive and judicial. Belarus is a presidential republic. The President of the Republic of Belarus is a head of state, a guarantor of the Constitution, of peoples' rights and freedoms.

In accordance with the Constitution the representative and legislative body is the Parliament- the National Assembly- consisting of two chambers- the House of Representatives (110 deputies) and the Council of the Republic (64 members).

The executive power in the republic is exercised by the Government - the Council of Ministers being the central body of state administration.
The local administration and self-administration is carried through the system of local executive and administrative bodies (councils of deputies), bodies of self-administration, referenda, assemblies etc.

The judicial power in the republic belongs to the courts. Control over accordance of legal acts with the Constitution is exercised by the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Belarus. Supervision of the exact and uniform execution of laws by all bodies of state management, local councils and other legal, and also physical persons is carried out by the General Public Prosecutor of the Republic of Belarus.

Control over the fulfillment of the republican budget, the utilization of state property, the execution of parliamentary acts, regulating the relations with state property, economic, financial and tax relations, is carried out by the State Control Committee.

2. Select the correct answer.

1. The authority of the President of Belarus is established and defined by

a) the Belarus Constitution

b) the Presidential Act of the Republic of Belarus

2. The current president of Belarus was elected to the post in

a) 1994 and is now serving his third term

b) 1999 and is now serving his second term

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