The international camp «Be-La-Rus» gathered youth from three countries at the Mound of Friendship in the Verkhnedvinsk district

Annually, the meadow near the Mound of Friendship at the junction of three borders in the Verkhnedvinsk district becomes a meeting, remembrance, and unity place for about 600 participants – Belarusians, Russians, and Latvians – for four days. Youth have been setting up a tent camp here since 1992 to continue the glorious tradition of veterans' meetings at the Mound of Friendship.

"It doesn't matter what the meadow will be like: rain, thunderstorm, intense heat, or mosquitoes. Everything depends on your mood when you arrive." These words of the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the BRSM, Andrey Belyakov, published on the front page of the local camp newspaper "Na Grani" (On the Border), proved prophetic.

The current camp "Be-Lа-Rus" lacked only a thunderstorm, and one day the meadow was simply flooded with rain, but the campfire of friendship burned just as brightly; rather, the weather contributed to even greater unity around the fire. Those who come here year after year are prepared for any conditions because they know the value of these four days: new acquaintances, communication regardless of borders, remembrance of a shared past, and confidence in a future where everyone is friends.

Remembrance is one of the main goals of "Be-Lа-Rus." Remembrance of the heroic military past, in which three peoples fought shoulder to shoulder in these partisan forests for peace and freedom. This is precisely why the central event of the camp is a rally at the monument to the Proshkovo Komsomol underground fighters at the Mound of Friendship, with the participation of war veterans from the border regions of Verkhnedvinsk and Sebezh.

– Every year we fear one thing – what if you don't come, so live longer, our dear veterans, – noted **Chairperson of the Union for the Progress of Youth of Latvia Marina Vasilyeva. –** We want to say a huge thank you to you. When we created the camp in 1992, we decided that it would be right here, in the place bequeathed to us by our fathers and grandfathers. We cannot imagine how you survived that terrible time in your youth, found the strength to fight and give the next generations life, happiness, the opportunity to raise children, and look to the future.

The meeting was very warm and heartfelt. The youth thanked the veterans with sincere words and warm applause. The event continued with a joint performance of military songs at the camp, accompanied by an accordion and rain. The veterans, in turn, kept saying: "We have excellent youth! They can be proud!"

By the way, "Be-La-Rus" has indeed provided many opportunities for young people from different regions of the three countries to demonstrate their achievements. The delegation of the Vitebsk region also had many victories, which contributed to the overall achievements of the Belarusian side.

Our guys turned out to be the best in the bivouac competition, captivating the jury with a Belarusian folk wedding ceremony and reflecting the camp's theme – preparation for the World Festival of Youth and Students in Sochi. Representatives of PSU – the country's "Student of the Year" Dmitry Kukso and the secretary of the university's BRSM primary organization Kristina Kislova – surprised in the creative competition "Be-La-Russian Dawns," and the strongest person in the camp based on the results of kettlebell lifting competitions was Pavel Kulakovsky, a representative of UP "Vitebskoblgaz." The Vitebsk youth, as part of the national team, participated in tug-of-war and an intellectual game, where Belarus again came out first.

– The camp is an opportunity to meet old acquaintances, to compete in a good friendly style, when not every region is for itself, but represents the country. This unites people, – noted **Viktor Glushin, First Secretary of the Vitebsk Regional Committee of the BRSM**. – For the BRSM, "Be-La-Rus" is one of the landmark events, so our union supports it and will continue to support it. This is one of the areas of international cooperation. Belarus today acts as a peacekeeping platform; we say that no political processes, no events in the world can prevent young people from communicating and making friends.

For this, young people are ready to travel considerable distances. And not only from Brest and Gomel or the Russian cities of Moscow, St. Petersburg, Stavropol, and Ryazan. But even from the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, like Nadezhda Serotetto from the city of Salekhard. Or Alexander Dotsenko from Khabarovsk, who, to get to "Be-La-Rus", traveled 8,000 km and crossed seven time zones! The guys are in Belarus for the first time, and they have great impressions of the country and the camp, where they felt the hospitality of Belarusians from different regions and the openness of our broad soul.

– I have been to many youth festivals and meetings, but the atmosphere here is special, – shared Alexander. – It's hard to describe. You have to experience it yourself.

Reference from "VV": The organizers of the International Youth Camp "Be-La-Rus" are the Belarusian Republican Youth Union, the Russian Union of Youth, and the Union for Youth Progress of Latvia.

By Olga MASLOVSKAYA, photos by the author. "Vitebskie Vesti".