| Summary: | It has been proven that the burgeoning power of the EU is not negligible. However, it is still debatable whether the EU acts as a smart power in its external human rights policy. Through Joseph Nye's theory of hard, soft, and smart power, this thesis will offer a critical understanding of a wide range of factors which merits the EU's role as a smart power. The contemporary history of Belarus also illustrates that the political, economic, and cultural endeavours of the EU reveal the institution's role as a smart power. Within the theoretical framework predicated on Nye's theory on the aforementioned powers, the EU-Belarus relations will be be analysed in order to lay bare the power of the EU and to shed light on the significance of human rights in the EU policies.
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