However, the flag of Belarus has been noticeably missing from the graphic next to her name, instead replaced with a simple blue rectangle. It's the third year that the Grand Slam has ruled that ...

and pushed for abandoning the country’s red-and-white national flag in favor of one similar to what it used as a Soviet republic. Belarus' top security agency kept its fearsome Soviet-era name ...

Rights groups, activists and independent media in Russia and Belarus endured increased government scrutiny, repressive laws and even were shut down and forced to operate from exile abroad.