Belarus leaps 4 positions in Reporters without Borders Press Freedom Index

The Reporters without Borders international organization has issued its annual index of freedom of the press, placing Belarus 151st out of 175 countries.
‘Indicators point to a deterioration in the press freedom situation in almost all of the former Soviet Republics except Georgia (81st) and, to a lesser extent, Belarus (151st), whose government has initiated a cautious and so far limited improvement in its relations with the press as part of a renewed dialogue with the EU. It is hard at this stage to predict whether this ripple on the surface will swell or fade away’, says the report.
Here is data on former Soviet countries, including Belarus, as well as its EU neighbours and their respective positions last year:
10. Lithuania – 16
13. Latvia – 7
37. Ukraine – 87
151. Belarus – 154
153. Russia – 141