CUSTOMS UNION – PROTOTYPE OF CIS COMMON ECONOMIC SPACE

The participants in the CIS summit in Bishkek have come up with a Treaty to set up a Customs Union of the Eurasian Economic Community. According to the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Denisov, this marks a move in the direction of building a common economic space on the territory of the Commonwealth of Independent States. Our correspondent Yelizaveta Isakova reports.

When the possibility of building a common economic space on the territories of former Soviet republics was first voiced in the mid90s, many experts reacted skeptically, for the economies of CIS countries were at far too different a level then. Now that the economic climate in Russia has improved and CIS economies have witnessed considerable growth, the idea has acquired more substance. And even though a single trade and economic zone remains a far perspective, a move in this direction has been made as Russia, Belorussia and Kazakhstan have started discussing the legal framework of a Customs Union.

This makes a prototype or an integration core which will later be joined by the rest of the member countries, Andrei Denisov says. The move reflects flexibility and consistency because no one is being dragged into integration structures by force and these structures are created without haste and with emphasis on quality in the first place.

In everyday life, the diplomat said, the CIS common economic space does exist despite the differences among its members. According to the Russian deputy foreign minister, members of the Commonwealth of Independent States maintain fairly close economic ties and will develop them in the future. Russia, Kazakhstan and Belorussia, which have joined the Customs Union Treaty, are taking the lead in the matter. Moscow believes, however, that other CIS members will soon follow suit, since the project, Andrei Denisov says, promises tangible economic gains and protection of the interests of manufacturers and exporters. In addition, it helps to enhance economic and social stability which would guarantee efficient work towards integration within the CIS.


RUVR-The Voice Of Russia