Canada and Belarus
Canada–Belarus relations are strongly limited by human rights and Belarusian participation in Russia’s war against Ukraine. Ottawa combines sanctions and limited official contact with civil society support and international coordination on political freedoms and media.
Analysis reviewed: 2026-10-08 · Indicators updated: 2026-10-08Bilateral context
Diplomatic relations were established in April 1992 and Canada is represented from its Warsaw embassy.
What merchandise trade shows
In 2025, goods trade between Canada and Belarus totalled 1.5 million current USD.
Documented trade sectors
Within the selected chapters, electrical and electronic equipment stands out in shipments from Canada to Belarus, at 0.0167 million USD in 2025.
Bilateral indicators
Blank cells: data unavailable.
| Indicator | Value | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Goods trade | 1.53 M USD | 2025 · Comtrade |
| Goods: Canada to Belarus | 0.168 M USD | 2025 · Comtrade |
| Goods: Belarus to Canada | 1.36 M USD | 2025 · Comtrade |
| Services trade | ||
| Export share: Canada to Belarus | 0.0000303 % | 2025 · Comtrade |
| Export share: Belarus to Canada | ||
| Investment stock: Canada in Belarus | ||
| Investment stock: Belarus in Canada |
Definitions and sources
Trade adds both directions. Shares refer to the country’s total goods exports; investment is an accumulated stock, not an annual flow. Every figure retains the currency and period of its source. BEA positions are historical-cost estimates based on the immediate counterpart, not market values or investment by ultimate owner. ‘More than’ indicates a lower bound, not an exact amount. A recorded stock does not establish new activity or authorisation to operate under sanctions.
- Goods trade
- 2025 · UN Comtrade · Goods; full calendar year; CAN as reporter. Exports normally FOB and imports CIF; not a sum of mirror reporting. Both directions are identified from the same customs reporting.
- Goods: Canada to Belarus
- 2025 · UN Comtrade · Goods; full calendar year; CAN as reporter. Exports normally FOB and imports CIF; not a sum of mirror reporting. Both directions are identified from the same customs reporting.
- Goods: Belarus to Canada
- 2025 · UN Comtrade · Goods; full calendar year; CAN as reporter. Exports normally FOB and imports CIF; not a sum of mirror reporting. Both directions are identified from the same customs reporting.
- Export share: Canada to Belarus
- 2025 · UN Comtrade · Exports to the partner / worldwide exports by the same reporter; same year and coverage.
Country comparison
Period and source beside each figure · est. = estimate by the stated institution.
| Indicator | Canada | Belarus |
|---|---|---|
| Nominal GDP | 2.32 trillion USD2025 · WB | 93.4 billion USD2025 · World Bank |
| GDP per capita | 55,697.66 USD2025 · WB | 10,279.25 USD2025 · World Bank |
| GDP growth | 1.74 %2025 · WB | 1.3 %2025 · World Bank |
| Policy interest rate | 2.25 %2026-09-02 · BoC | |
| Inflation · annual average | 2.07 %Annual average · 2025 · WB | 6.6 %Annual average · 2025 · World Bank |
| Inflation · latest year-on-year figure | 3 %Year-on-year · Aug. 2026 · StatCan | |
| Unemployment | 6.91 %ILO est.2025 · WB | 3.38 %ILO est.2025 · World Bank |
| Budget balance (% of GDP) | -1.8 %IMF est.2025 · IMF | 0.2 %IMF est.2025 · IMF |
| Gross public debt (% of GDP) | 113.5 %IMF est.2025 · IMF | 33.1 %IMF est.2025 · IMF |
| Current account balance (% of GDP) | -0.95 %2025 · WB | -1.94 %2025 · World Bank |
| Population | 41,651,6532025 · WB | 9,085,9912025 · World Bank |
| Area | 9,984,670 km²2012 · StatCan | 207,629 km²2023 · World Bank |
| Military expenditure | ||
| Military expenditure (% of GDP) |
Definitions, dates and sources
Blank cells are not zero. Average annual inflation and the latest year-on-year figure appear in separate rows: they are not the same measure. Every annual indicator retains its reference year; when the years differ, the figures are identified as not directly comparable. When a figure is unavailable from the World Bank, an annual IMF estimate is used and identified as such. The latest year-on-year figure is the latest official release verified as of 7 October 2026. This includes advance releases marked as provisional. Mexico may have a fortnightly figure before the full month is published; it is not automatically compared with a monthly figure. The publication date is retained in each source’s details; it does not replace the observation period or the annual average. Policy rates carry their own dates and represent different instruments. Spain and France share the ECB rate. Balances are positive for surpluses and negative for deficits. The IMF may use fiscal years; unemployment retains each source’s definition (ILO estimates, IMF WEO or PCBS), as stated in the details. For Palestine, debt and the fiscal balance cover central government and retain the PCBS definition; they are not presented as consolidated general government. These are economic magnitudes, not measures of relationship quality.
Area retains each source’s territorial coverage; it does not determine sovereignty or effective control. Canada uses an archived national geographic reference. Military expenditure retains the 2024 SIPRI sample distributed by the World Bank: the amount and percentage of GDP use that same definition, which differs from NATO’s. It is not an approved budget or a 2026 figure. Information from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Military expenditure database · Terms of use0
Indicators reviewed: 2026-10-07. Each source retains its original access date; this review does not turn all the data into 2026 observations. Figures may be revised.
- Nominal GDP
- Current USDCanada: 2025 · World BankBelarus: 2025 · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- GDP per capita
- Current USD per personCanada: 2025 · World BankBelarus: 2025 · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- GDP growth
- Annual real change (%)Canada: 2025 · World BankBelarus: 2025 · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- Policy interest rate
- Central bank instrument (%)Canada: 2026-09-02 · Overnight rate target · Bank of Canada
- Inflation · annual average
- Average annual change in headline CPI (%)Canada: 2025 · Average annual CPI change (%) · World BankBelarus: 2025 · Annual average change in CPI (%) · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- Inflation · latest year-on-year figure
- Headline CPI relative to the same period of the previous year (%); monthly or fortnightly frequency statedCanada: 2026-08 · Headline CPI change relative to the same month of the previous year (%) · Statistics Canada · Published: 2026-09-14 · National headline year-on-year CPI, not monthly inflation or an annual average.
- Unemployment
- % of the labour force; definition used by the stated institutionCanada: 2025 · World Bank · ILO est.Belarus: 2025 · ILO modelled estimate, percentage of the labour force · World Bank · ILO est. · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- Budget balance
- General government (% of GDP)Canada: 2025 · IMF — World Economic Outlook · IMF est.Belarus: 2025 · IMF · IMF est. · IMF WEO general-government estimate. Retains the source’s fiscal year when it differs from the calendar year.
- Gross public debt
- General government (% of GDP)Canada: 2025 · IMF — World Economic Outlook · IMF est.Belarus: 2025 · IMF · IMF est. · IMF WEO general-government estimate. Retains the source’s fiscal year when it differs from the calendar year.
- Current account balance
- % of GDPCanada: 2025 · World BankBelarus: 2025 · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- Population
- PeopleCanada: 2025 · World BankBelarus: 2025 · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date. Extrapolated assuming the same growth rate as the one between 2024 average population and 2025 January 1st population of National Statistical Committee website.
- Area
- Total area in km²; territorial coverage of the sourceCanada: 2012 · Total area of Canada, land and water; archived official geographic reference from 2012 · Statistics Canada · Not an annual measurement for 2025. Replaces an API observation that does not match the national reference.Belarus: 2023 · World Bank · Official World Bank series; observation period, not download date.
- Military expenditure
- Current USD per year; SIPRI series
- Military expenditure (% of GDP)
- Percentage of GDP; SIPRI definition, not NATO’s definition
Other data specific to this relationship
What they buy and sell
Documented selection, not an exhaustive list. Cells without a figure do not mean zero value; some products are identified without a verified amount.
Canada to Belarus
Belarus to Canada
How trade has changed
Millions of current USD · full calendar years
View chart figures
| Period | Total | Canada to Belarus | Belarus to Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 38.8 | 12.5 | 26.3 |
| 2022 | 17.6 | 4.7 | 12.9 |
| 2023 | 4.6 | 0.879 | 3.7 |
| 2024 | 2.6 | 0.619 | 2 |
| 2025 | 1.5 | 0.168 | 1.4 |
Connections between people
Following Belarus’ presidential elections in August 2020, Ottawa denounced serious, systematic human rights violations and violence against peaceful protesters, opponents, journalists and rights defenders. [1]
Residents, study and travel
Blank cells: data unavailable. Each measure retains its definition and period.
| Indicator | Value | Period / source |
|---|---|---|
| Residents from Canada living in Belarus | ||
| Residents from Belarus living in Canada | ||
| Study and training: Canada in Belarus | ||
| Study and training: Belarus in Canada | ||
| Academic stays: Canada in Belarus | ||
| Academic stays: Belarus in Canada | ||
| Travel: Canada to Belarus | ||
| Travel: Belarus to Canada |
What each figure measures
Residents are counted by nationality and the coverage of the stated register, not as people born in the other country or as new arrivals in one year. PERE includes dual nationals and people born outside Spain. Study with OPT and stays carrying academic credit are different measures. Travel may include several visits by the same person; FRONTUR arrivals require an overnight stay, whereas the Canadian survey includes day visits. These figures are neither added together nor automatically compared across directions.
Mobility data added or reviewed: 2026-10-07. Reference periods may be earlier.
Underlying ties
History, institutions and long-standing issues.
Bilateral context
Diplomatic relations were established in April 1992 and Canada is represented from its Warsaw embassy. Following Belarus’ presidential elections in August 2020, Ottawa denounced serious, systematic human rights violations and violence against peaceful protesters, opponents, journalists and rights defenders. [1]
The scale of both economies
Nominal GDP for Canada is 2,319.9 billion USD (2025), compared with 93.4 for Belarus (2025). The reference populations are 41.65 and 9.09 million, respectively. In the same year, the economy of Canada was 24.84 times that of Belarus in nominal GDP. The comparison provides context on market size, but does not, on its own, measure influence, well-being or diplomatic closeness. Estimates and their sources retain their labels in the tables. [5] [6] [7] [8]
Recent developments
Recent developments and latest available data · Review: 2026-10-08
Cooperation and bilateral issues
Canada was one of seventeen countries activating the OSCE Moscow Mechanism in September 2020 to investigate these events. Contacts with Minsk have been minimal since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Sanctions under the Special Economic Measures Act respond both to the human rights situation and support for Russian aggression. Canada maintains civil society financing and work with coalitions on media and internet freedom. [1]
What merchandise trade shows
In 2025, merchandise trade between the two countries (Canada and Belarus) totalled 1.5 million current USD. Shipments from the first to the second were 0.168 million; those in the opposite direction, 1.4 million. The difference between the two flows was 1.2 million, in favour of Belarus. This is a goods balance, not the total balance of the economic relationship: it excludes services, income and transfers. Both directions come from a single customs reporter to avoid adding mirror records. [2]
The partner's share of exports
Sales from Canada to the partner represented 0.0000303% of its worldwide goods exports in 2025. The share compares the same reporter, year and coverage. It measures export concentration, not the percentage of GDP dependent on this relationship. A partner may be important in a specific sector even if its share of total goods trade is small. [2]
Five years of trade trends
The consistent series shows 38.8 million USD in 2021 and 1.5 million in 2025. The change between the two endpoints was -96.1 % in current dollars. The highest annual value in the period was recorded in 2021, at 38.8 million. The chart allows the two directions to be compared to see whether they moved together or differently. The change combines quantities, prices and exchange rates; it is not automatically attributed to a treaty, a visit or a political decision. The same reporter is retained and missing years are not interpolated. [3]
Documented trade sectors
Within the selected chapters, electrical and electronic equipment stands out in shipments from Canada to Belarus, at 0.0167 million USD in 2025. Within the selected chapters, machinery and mechanical appliances stands out in shipments from Belarus to Canada, at 0.00554 million USD in 2025. The table compares eight selected chapters with the same coverage as the trade total. It is not a complete list or proof that the first item in this selection is the leading product across the entire relationship. A chapter groups numerous goods: machinery and components, for example, do not describe a single business transaction. [4]
Sources and data
Periods and scope of the figures
Institutional sources and periods accompany each figure. Annual trade, investment positions, residents and visits are distinct measures. Empty cells do not mean zero. Statements of intent are not presented as project implementation or treaties in force.
- Bilateral relations — CAN-BLR
Global Affairs Canada · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-07
- Bounded matrix; reporter, partner, year, chapter and direction identified in each record
UN Comtrade · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-08
- Trade series 2021–2025
UN Comtrade · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-08
- Bounded matrix; reporter, partner, year, chapter and direction identified in each record
UN Comtrade · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-08
- Official statistics
World Bank · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-09-17
- NY.GDP.MKTP.CD; country ISO and year preserved; no military data; exact requested country subset independently re-fetched and values compared
World Bank · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-07
- Official statistics
World Bank · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-06
- SP.POP.TOTL; country ISO and year preserved; no military data; exact requested country subset independently re-fetched and values compared
World Bank · Institutional source · Accessed: 2026-10-07
Additional sources on products and human connections
- UN Comtrade
2026-10-08 · Accessed: 2026-10-08 · Bounded matrix; reporter, partner, year, chapter and direction identified in each record.