The parliament of the republic proclaimed the sovereignty of Belarus on  1990, and during the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Belarus declared independence on  1991. Following the adoption of a new constitution in 1994, Alexander Lukashenko was elected Belarus's first president in the country's first and only free election post-independence, serving as president ever since. Lukashenko's government is authoritarian with a poor human rights record due to widespread human rights abuses. Belarus is the only country in Europe officially using the death penalty. Lukashenko has continued a number of Soviet-era policies, such as state ownership of large sections of the economy. In 2000, Belarus and Russia signed a treaty for greater cooperation, forming the Union State.