For many small or poor countries, the challenge is particularly tough. How many people can really describe the essence of Andorra or Mali? And what if you're not only small and poor, but also new, and emerging from the shadow of a far larger power that has spent much of the preceding century trying to obliterate your identity?

This is the case for the states of the former USSR. When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, 15 new countries emerged. They quickly needed to establish themselves internationally and undergo painful economic transitions, each with varying results. What role has branding played in all of this? Some interesting lessons can be drawn by comparing two states -- Estonia and Belarus.

Estonia is an example of that which holds all the branding aces. A small country on the Baltic Sea, its 1.4 million people have traditionally placed themselves in a Scandinavian context. Links to Finland are especially important -- the Estonian language is closely related to Finnish. Furthermore, the country was independent from 1918 until Soviet annexation in 1940. These factors helped Estonia carve a niche in the post-Soviet world; its GDP (gross domestic product) has rocketed and it is on the verge of joining the European Union.

From Belarus, the world looks very different. During the 20th century it suffered more than its fair share of tragedy and is still recovering. A quarter of its people perished in World War II, and the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster had a devastating impact on the country. Seventeen years later, large tracts in the south of the country remain "dead zones."

With 10 million people in a territory the size of Kansas (or Germany, Oman, etc.), Belarus is considered a pariah state. The economic transition has been tough, but unlike other former Soviet states, Belarusians have reaped few of the political rewards. President Alexandr Lukashenko stands criticized for human rights' abuses and press censorship, and is in favor of restoring the union with Russia -- providing he can negotiate terms to suit him.

Igor Fissenko, ministerial adviser at the Embassy of Belarus in Belgium, is clear on the reasons for the loose Belarusian identity. Fissenko says, "It is difficult to say that our national identity is based on borders. The USSR set out to eliminate national identity, and to some extent they succeeded. In Belarus they succeeded most of all."

The imposition of Russian greatly undermined the Belarusian language, for example, although both have equal status today. Nevertheless, it would be wrong to think that Belarus has nothing of its own to offer. Fissenko identifies the nation’s characteristics as a traditional and religious way of life, slow and weighty decision-making, and extensive natural resources -- Belarus has 66 percent forest cover and is home to the Belarusian bison. It also has significant historical capital, including the city of Novogrudok, formerly the center of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The idea of Chernobyl "radiation tourism" (highlighting the effects on the land) has even been floated, although this is perhaps best left on the drawing board.

Overall, the impression is that Belarus is failing to make the best of what it has. Instead, it promotes itself with out-of-date, densely typeset magazines describing in great detail textile output rates and taxation regulations. One guidebook that claims to be "the most comprehensive information package about Belarus for business and travelers" devotes less than a quarter of its 50 pages to tourism.