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Eurasian Union (EAC), full title Eurasian Economic Union - project of a union of sovereign states with a single political [source not specified 1112 days]
, economic, military and customs space, proposed to be created on the basis of the union of Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus and the corresponding sectoral close integration structures of the CIS - EurAsEC, SES, CSTO, Customs Union.
History of the Eurasian Union project
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Eurasian Union |
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date of creation |
2013 -2015 Declaration of foundation: 11/18/2011 EEA: 01/01/2012 |
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Largest cities(over 1 million) |
Moscow, St. Petersburg, Minsk, Novosibirsk, Alma-Ata, Yekaterinburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Samara, Omsk, Kazan, Chelyabinsk, Rostov-on-Don, Ufa, Volgograd, Perm, Krasnoyarsk, Voronezh |
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Member States |
Countries that signed the declaration on the creation of the Eurasian Union:
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official languages |
Russian, Kazakh, Belarusian |
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Management Eurasian Economic Commission |
Victor Khristenko |
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Territory |
1st in the world 20,030,748 km² |
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Population Total ( 2012 ) - Density |
7th in the world 169 880 000 (2012) 8.36 people/km² |
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GDP (PPP) Total ( 2011 ) |
6th in the world $2.720 trillion |
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Currencies |
Evraz Russian ruble Belarusian ruble Kazakhstani tenge |
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Timezone |
UTC from +3 to +12 |
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Telephone codes |
7 (Russia, Kazakhstan) 375 (Belarus) |
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Official site |
absent |
Due to the collapse of the USSR at the end of the 20th century, a need arose among the public and a number of politicians in some former Soviet republics to restore close integration. At the beginning of the 21st century, the idea of post-Soviet Eurasian integration and new Eurasianism became widespread again, and its most famous supporters and ideologists are: the President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbaev, Russian President Vladimir Putin, philosophers and political scientists Alexander Dugin, Alexander Panarin, Sergey Gavrov, Kyrgyz writer Chingiz Aitmatov and many others.
The need to create a Eurasian Union was first written about in the 20s and 30s. 20th century classical Eurasians - N. S. Trubetskoy, P. N. Savitsky and G. V. Vernadsky. They saw this as a gradual transformation of the Soviet Union into the Eurasian Union, by changing the communist ideology to the Eurasian one.
The first such detailed project for the Union of Soviet Republics of Europe and Asia - the European-Asian Union - was proposed even before the collapse of the USSR by Academician A.D. Sakharov.
With the collapse of the USSR, another project for creating a confederal Union Sovereign States was not implemented, only a poorly integrated international (interstate) association, the Commonwealth of Independent States, was created.
According to the following detailed project of March 1994, the President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev it was assumed that initially the Eurasian Union would include five republics former USSR: Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan. In the future, other states may join the Union - Armenia, Uzbekistan, Moldova, as well as, possibly, self-proclaimed post-Soviet states - Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Transnistria, the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.
At the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries, Russia and Belarus first created the Community, and then Union State, however, the need for a broader such Union remained.
The process of creating sectoral integration structures of the CIS was dynamic, but the project of the Eurasian Union remained only on paper until it was inspired in December 2010 new life at the EurAsEC summit. In the fall of 2011, the Eurasian Union project received a new impetus from the publication of the Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin articles “A new integration project for Eurasia - the future that is being born today” (2011). Putin, and after him United Russia leader Boris Gryzlov, in the article “The Future is Ours” in Nezavisimaya Gazeta, argued that the creation of the Eurasian Union will allow Russia to become another global pole of influence.
2010
After the formation of the Customs Union in December 2010, at the EurAsEC summit in Moscow, agreements were reached on the creation of the Eurasian Union on the basis of the Common Economic Space of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia. As the President stated Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev,
We agreed (not immediately and not without difficulty) to create a Eurasian Union with Kazakhstan and Belarus. A very important decision. Let's develop together.
Medvedev did not rule out the possibility of including Kyrgyzstan in the union:
Our new union and now the One economic space- they will be open to the entry of other countries... This means that we extend a hand of cooperation to our closest neighbors, our friends, thereby creating conditions for them to modernize the economy and improve the quality of life of people.
2011
The movement forward is intensive, we expect that next year we will sign the declaration of the Eurasian Union, which can and should begin its activities in 2013.
On October 3, 2011, an article written personally appeared in the Izvestia newspaper Vladimir Putin. In it, the author discusses the creation of the Eurasian Union on the basis of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, “capable of becoming one of the poles modern world» .
I am convinced that the creation of the Eurasian Union and effective integration is the path that will allow its participants to take their rightful place in the complex world of the 21st century. Only together can our countries become among the leaders of global growth and civilizational progress and achieve success and prosperity. .
Moscow would like to create a single currency of the Eurasian Union with a single emission center.
October 19, 2011 heads of state Eurasian Economic Community decided to join Kyrgyzstan Customs Union, which currently includes Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. This was announced during a meeting of the heads EurAsEC countries General Secretary of the organization Tair Mansurov.
“Somewhere at the turn of 2015, we may approach, if we act as energetically as we have worked so far, the implementation of the idea of creating the Eurasian Union.”
On October 16, 2011, at a meeting of the interstate council of the Eurasian Economic Community (the highest body of the Customs Union) at the level of heads of government, Kazakhstan blocked the name “Eurasian Union”. The draft union is sent for revision.
On October 24, 2011, the largest parliamentary party of communists in Moldova called on the authorities to take a course towards joining the Eurasian Union, without abandoning European integration.
November 18, 2011, in Moscow, President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko and head of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbaev signed a declaration on Eurasian economic integration.
year 2012
On January 1, 2012, on the territory of the three member countries of the Customs Union, the Common Economic Space (SES) began to operate. The SES integration agreements, adopted on November 18, 2011, will come into full effect in July 2012. The purpose of the formation of the SES is to create conditions for the stable and effective development of the economies of the participating states and improve the living standards of the population.
Following the creation of the Customs Union and the formation of the Common Economic Space, the partner states intend to begin creating a supranational - Eurasian - parliament, State Duma Chairman Sergei Naryshkin said during a working visit to St. Petersburg.
IN last years integration processes are actively underway in the CIS space, he explained, and have already been created Customs Union and a single economic space, which will become the basis for the formation of the future Eurasian Union.
The new supranational structure will require, according to Naryshkin, transparent and understandable economic and other legislation. However, those supranational bodies that are currently being formed or have already been created, for example, the Eurasian Economic Commission, “cannot and should not take on parliamentary tasks.” They will have to be resolved by the supranational parliament.
It is still premature to talk about the structure of the future legislative body of the Eurasian Union. According to preliminary data, work on its creation will begin with the formation of a special parliamentary commission in the State Duma, which will develop a certain legislative procedure for the formation of a supranational parliament for Russia. In the future, it is planned to create a working group from among Russian parliamentarians, which, together with colleagues from Belarus and Kazakhstan, will begin to develop comprehensive proposals on issues of unified economic legislation for further discussion.
On September 18, 2012, the Majilismen of the Kazakhstan Parliament rejected the idea of creating a unified Eurasian Parliament. The head of the Committee on International Affairs, Defense and Security of the Mazhilis, Maulen Ashimbaev, and the secretary of the Nur Otan People's Democratic Party, Erlan Karin, voiced their principled position. Politicians stated:
Despite all attempts to speed up the creation of supranational political structures, in reality, such a formulation of the issue is not and will not be on the general agenda. I will say even more - the creation of a supranational political structure cannot be discussed by us in principle, since this directly affects the sovereignty of our country. And the principle of sovereignty is clearly enshrined in the Constitution, and, moreover, according to the laws of our country, such issues cannot even be submitted to a national referendum.
At the moment, the Eurasian Dialogue discussion platform has been created at the European Club, which is designed to find future problematic issues in the creation of the Eurasian Union and, if possible, solve them.
November 4, 2012, National Unity Day, Eurasian Youth Union and the Eurasia Party announced the start of preparations for an all-Russian referendum on the creation of the Eurasian Union, which is scheduled for 2013. The organizing committee invited all public and political organizations Russia to join the initiative, the collection of signatures in support of it has begun.
On December 19, 2012, Advisor to the President of Russia Sergei Glazyev stated that the issue of introducing a single currency within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union has been discussed several times, but there is no positive decision yet. And then he made the following statement:
Within the framework of the Customs Union, the dominance of the ruble naturally occurs. ...
If we exclude the dollar and the euro, in which payments are still made mainly for energy resources, the weight of the ruble in the mutual trade of the three states is about 90%. .
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has announced her intention to prevent the creation of " new version Soviet Union" under the guise of economic integration. .
year 2013
The heads of the two states discussed the program of bilateral cooperation for 2013-2015, the progress in creating the Common Economic Space and progress towards the Eurasian Economic Union. The next contact between the two presidents will take place in the fall in Yekaterinburg during the traditional annual Forum of Border Regions. At this meeting, Nazarbayev said:
We have given instructions to prepare a new Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation; I hope we will sign it in Yekaterinburg this fall.
Vladimir Putin, in turn, noted that “the volume of our cooperation is very large, it is constantly growing and this is for the benefit of our economies, our peoples.” “The countries have gained very good experience in integration,” stated the Russian President.
Expansion history
Members
2013-2015
Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia
The three supposed first founding members of the Eurasian Union, having the highest degree of integration in the CIS - Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus - completed the creation by 2010 Customs Union, by January 1, 2012 of the Common Economic Space.
Information integration and IT projects
Story
* 2019: Pensions for migrant workers
In June 2019, it became known that Russia will begin paying pensions to labor migrants from the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union - Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
The decision is being prepared as part of the union pension agreement.
According to the document, which was prepared in March and must be ratified by the EAEU member countries by the end of 2019, the country in which the migrant worked and made contributions to Pension Fund, will pay him a pension after returning home.
The new measures will help restore the influx of labor migrants, which last year fell to its lowest level in post-Soviet history and no longer covers the natural population decline.
2018: China and the EAEU signed an agreement on trade and economic cooperation
An agreement on trade and economic cooperation between the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and China was signed in May 2018 during the Astana Economic Forum, which takes place on Thursday in the capital of Kazakhstan, a RIA Novosti correspondent reports.
According to the EEC press service, the EAEU and China have been negotiating an agreement on trade and economic cooperation over the past two years. Agreements were reached on wide-format and industry cooperation. The agreement sets a high standard of regulation in various areas, including the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights.
Earlier, the Minister of National Economy of Kazakhstan, Timur Suleimenov, said that “the agreement is non-preferential in nature and does not provide for the abolition of duties or the automatic reduction of non-tariff barriers.”
2017: Plan for connecting transport routes with the Silk Road Belt
As Adamkul Zhunusov noted in 2017, cooperation between the EAEU countries and the People’s Republic of China opens up enormous opportunities for the development of economic ties, trade, and the creation of new transport routes between Europe and Asia, which will significantly increase economic potential. A significant synergistic effect is expected from the implementation of a joint project with China to connect the EAEU and the Silk Road Economic Belt.
Part of the infrastructure projects will be financed from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the Fund Silk Road. As a first step, the Chinese side proposed that states located along the Silk Road formulate a list of pilot projects taking into account common interests. Such a list of 39 projects has already been prepared by a specially created working group and approved by the ministers of transport of the Union member states, Zhunusov recalled. Among the most significant joint initiatives, he noted the construction of new roads within the framework of the international transport route Europe - Western China with a length of 8,445 km, the Moscow-Kazan high-speed highway with a length of 770 km (within the framework of the Moscow-Beijing high-speed line), the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway as a southern branches of the Eurasian continental bridge, opening access to the markets of Western Asia and the Middle East. The EEC Minister placed special emphasis on the implementation of the Southern Railway Armenia – Iran”, which connects the existing railway system of Armenia with Iran. For a substantive discussion of these projects, it was decided to invite the Minister of Transport of China, Li Xiaopeng, to the next Meeting of the Ministers of Transport of the Union member states in December 2017, said Adamkul Zhunusov.
2015: Formation of the union
2014: Signing of documents on the creation of the EAEU
On May 29, 2014, in Astana, the presidents of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan signed documents on the creation of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) in 2015. The agreement was concluded to ensure economic progress through joint actions aimed at solving the challenges facing Member States common tasks on sustainable economic development, comprehensive modernization and strengthening the competitiveness of national economies within the global economy.
The management system will be similar to the one that has been in place since 2012 after the transformation of the Customs Union into the Common Economic Space (SES). Members of the board of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) and its chairman Viktor Khristenko will retain their positions. The agreement completes the five-year stage of formation of the union, which began in 2009 with the creation of the Customs Union, explains EEC Trade Minister Andrei Slepnev: the union will become an independent subject of international law.
Single market for goods and services
The three countries agree to create a single market for goods and services, although it will not be fully operational until 2025 - single markets for gas and oil must be created. The trade policy of the EAEU will not change: uniform customs regulations and tariffs, free movement of goods. The standards for the distribution of income from import duties will not change: 87.97% will go to Russia, 7.33% to Kazakhstan, 4.7% to Belarus.
The agreement spells out mechanisms to protect the market from imports. Seasonal duties may be established for a period of up to 6 months, and protective, anti-dumping and countervailing measures may be applied.
“In critical circumstances,” the EAEU Commission may impose retroactive anti-dumping duties for 200 days until the investigation is completed. While the anti-dumping investigation is ongoing, there is a risk that importers will bring in a year's supply of goods, and this damage needs to be prevented. This is a WTO-approved instrument,” says Slepnev.
Severstal CEO Alexei Mordashov asked Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev about the possibility of introducing such duties back in 2013. Without this, protective investigations are pointless, he explained.
Single regime for investments
It is planned to unify the investment regime in the countries of the union. Investors will have the right to compensate, at the expense of the state, for damage to their investments as a result of unrest, wars and revolutions. The nationalization of private assets, on the one hand, is prohibited, on the other, the investment protection annex describes the compensation mechanism: it must be market-based, paid quickly, and interest may be charged for delays.
23.04.2019
In this article we will talk about the history of the EAEU: what were the reasons and prerequisites for its emergence, from which integration associations it was formed, and what are its main goals and objectives today.
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Prerequisites
The need to create some kind of integration economic association in the post-Soviet space arose immediately as soon as this space became post-Soviet. During the existence of the USSR, the economies of the union republics were highly interdependent. In many production cycles, it was absolutely normal for part A to be made in one union republic, part B to be made in another, and their final assembly was carried out in a third.
Naturally, during the Soviet era there were no problems with the movement of goods and people across the borders of the republics. But after the collapse of the Union, it became obvious that political sovereignty and strict customs control at the border are, of course, good, but they are not very conducive to the development of foreign trade and, as a result, economic growth.
Moreover, an extremely clear illustration of these thoughts was the formation of the European Union in the second half of the twentieth century. That is, they have long been independent European states realized the need for economic integration and systematically moved towards it for many years.
Therefore, despite the popular trend of political independence in the early 90s, on the contrary, integration sentiments reigned in the economy. Nursultan Nazarbayev first voiced the idea that was in the air and used the term “Eurasian Union” during his first official visit to the Russian Federation in 1994:
There is an urgent need for a transition to high-quality new level relations between our countries on the basis of a new interstate association formed on the principles of voluntariness and equality. The Eurasian Union could become such an association. It should be built on principles other than the CIS, because the basis of the new association should be supranational bodies designed to solve two key tasks: the formation of a common economic space and ensuring a joint defense policy.
Also one of the important factors is the creation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995. This event set the information agenda for discussions on Eurasian integration for the next few years, identifying accession to the WTO as a Big Goal towards which every self-respecting national economy should move.
In this sense, regional economic integration with its closest neighbors was considered as an intermediate stage towards accession to the WTO. The fact is that a country candidate for accession to the WTO was obliged to have a certain legislative framework and developed instruments of customs and economic control. The same was necessary for regional integration. Accordingly, one of the goals of Eurasian economic integration was the development of national laws and the above-mentioned instruments, bringing them to the level required for accession to the WTO.
Chronology of events
1994-2000 - period of formation
At this time, a search was underway for optimal ways of cooperation and interim treaties and agreements were signed, not yet describing the forms of integration themselves, but only mutual obligations to develop and implement these forms.
1994
Nursultan Nazarbayev first spoke in Moscow with a proposal to create a Eurasian Union.
1995
January 6 Russia and Belarus conclude Agreement on the creation of the Customs Union and the formation of a common market. On January 20, Kazakhstan joined this agreement. This can be considered the starting point in the creation of a modern EAEU.
1996
March 29 Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan sign Treaty on Deepening Integration in the Economic and Humanitarian Fields. In essence, with this agreement, the countries publicly and officially confirmed their intentions for integration, but so far without much specificity in the wording, mechanisms and formats.
1999
February 26 Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan sign Agreement on the Customs Union (CU). With this agreement they, in fact, establish the Customs Union. However, in this composition the union will last only a year and a half.
2000-2011 - Common Economic Space
Despite the fact that the single customs space had already been implemented, the heads of the participating countries expressed a desire for deeper, already economic integration. I wanted not just “common borders,” but a “common economy.”
2000
October 10 Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan sign Treaty establishing the Eurasian Economic Community (EurAsEC), in which elements of supranational economic regulation can already be traced. The first supranational body appears - the Court of the Eurasian Economic Community.
2001
On May 30, this agreement comes into force. From this moment on, the Customs Union described above ceases to exist as such, but all its provisions and principles are inherited by the EurAsEC.
2003
September 19 Russia, Belarus, Ukraine and Kazakhstan signedAgreement on the formation of the Common Economic Space. From this moment, work began on preparing a legal framework with the aim of creating a single economic space that ensures the free movement of goods, services, capital and labor (the “four freedoms” of the EAEU).
2007
On October 6, Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan signed Agreement on the creation of a single customs territory and the formation of the Customs Union on the basis of the EurAsEC. Another supranational body appears - the Customs Union Commission and the Supreme Economic Council. This is already the same Customs Union, in which, after 5 years, many technical regulations will appear.
2010
The Customs Union begins work in January.
In July a single Customs Code for the member states of the Union.
On December 9, in the Declaration on the Formation of the Common Economic Space, it was officially announced for the first time that the member countries of the EurAsEC were moving towards a new, more in-depth form of integration - the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). In this regard, among other things, the need for a unified system of technical regulation and the introduction of fundamentally new supranational standards (technical regulations) was outlined.
2011
Since July, customs control remains only at the external borders of the Union.
It was signed on November 18 Decision on the creation of the Eurasian Economic Commission.
August 16th were published first technical regulations: TR TS 006/2011 “On safety pyrotechnic products"(came into force on February 15, 2012) and TR CU 005/2011 "On packaging safety" (came into force on June 1, 2012).
In total, 24 technical regulations were approved and published during 2011. All of them came into force in the period 2012-2015. The entry into force of technical regulations for certain products automatically canceled the national standard for these products.
2012-2019 - Eurasian Economic Union
This is the period of formation of the single economic integration association that exists today - the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). At this time, transitional forms were abandoned and supranational institutions developed.
The EAEU is already positioned as the “core of continental integration”, uniting Asia and Europe. Its concept is being developed taking into account the logic of the global Chinese project “One Belt and One Road”, aimed at creating fast and efficient trade routes between Europe and Asia. However, it is important to emphasize that it is not “in accordance”, but “taking into account”.
At the same time, overseas people are starting to say that Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus are building a new USSR. To which the leaders of the participating countries have repeatedly stated that the EAEU is not a political union, but exclusively an economic one. The President of Kazakhstan actually proposed a radical way to nip these conversations in the bud, quote: “[When I travel abroad, I often hear] that we are creating the USSR, or something under Russia. Maybe Turkey, a big country, will accept it, and the conversation will end.”.
2012
On February 2, the Eurasian Economic Commission began to function. The Customs Union Commission was abolished, its functions transferred to the EEC.
On October 19, Kyrgyzstan joined the Customs Union (which currently included Russia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus).
were signed on November 18 Declaration on Eurasian Economic Integration(essentially, a road map for the creation of the EAEU) and Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Commission(official recognition by the heads of state of the EEC as a supranational body).
2014
On May 29 of the year in Astana (now Nur-Sultan) it was signed Treaty on the Establishment of the Eurasian Economic Union. Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan ratified this treaty on October 5, 9 and 14, respectively.
October 10 signed signed Treaty on Armenia's accession to the EAEU, ratified by Armenia on December 4.
2015
On May 21, Kyrgyzstan ratified the Treaty of Accession to the EAEU and became its official member in August.
2016
2017
On April 14, Moldova became the first (and still remains the only) observer country in the EAEU.
2018
On January 1, the Customs Code of the EAEU came into force, thereby repealing the previous Customs Code of the Customs Union. Now all countries joining the EAEU automatically join the Customs EAEU Union.
Don't get confused by "unions"!
The use of the phrase “Customs Union” as a proper noun was initially not the most best idea, because a customs union [of several states] is a common noun phrase. There are more than 10 customs unions in the world today.
Therefore, from a morphological point of view it would be correct to say thatthere are two Unions:
Firstly, Eurasian Economic Union(EAEU) , which is a unique form of unification of several states,
Secondly, Customs Union of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU CU), which is one of many customs unions in the world. And a country that joins the EAEU automatically also becomes a member of the EAEU CU.
EAEU today
Today, the EAEU includes five countries: Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia, and Kyrgyzstan.
Moldova is an observer country.
Free trade agreements have been concluded with Vietnam, Iran, China, and Cuba.
Negotiations are underway to create a free trade regime with Singapore, India, Egypt, Thailand, Israel and Serbia.
There are 4 supranational bodies in the EAEU:
Supreme Eurasian Economic Council- the supreme body, which includes the heads of the EAEU member countries. Meetings of the Supreme Council are held annually.
Eurasian Intergovernmental Economic Council- a body that includes heads of government (prime ministers) of the EAEU member countries. Council meetings are also held annually.
Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC)- a regularly operating regulatory body whose tasks include the direct functioning of the Union, the development of integration and supranational institutions and instruments. Consists of the Commission Council and the Commission Board.
Court of the Eurasian Economic Union- a judicial body that solves the problems of law enforcement practice of the supranational legislation of the EAEU.
Today in the EAEU, and their number is growing every year.
TR CU or TR EAEU?
Separately, it is worth clarifying the issue of the name of technical regulations.
At the moment, there are two types of technical regulations in force in the EAEU: technical regulations of the Customs Union (TR CU) and technical regulations of the Eurasian Economic Union (TR EAEU).
These are absolutely identical documents that have equal legal force and scope. The difference between them is solely in the name.
If you pay attention, until 2014 inclusive, the technical regulations of the Customs Union were published (the latest was the technical regulations for tobacco products), and after 2015, when the EAEU already officially existed, the technical regulations of the Eurasian Economic Union began to be published. And in the future, only EAEU TR will now appear, but the CU TR will continue to operate without renaming.
Among the largest modern international associations is the Eurasian. It was formally established in 2014, but by the time the agreement on its creation was signed, the EAEU member states already had significant experience of interaction in the mode of active economic integration. What are the specifics of the EAEU? What is this - an economic or political association?
General information about the organization
Let's begin our exploration of the question posed by reviewing the key facts about the organization in question. What are the most noteworthy facts about the EAEU? What kind of structure is this?
The Eurasian Economic Union, or EAEU, is an association within the framework of international economic cooperation of several states of the Eurasian region - Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Belarus and Armenia. Other countries are expected to join this association, since the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) is an open structure. The main thing is that candidates for joining the association share the goals of this organization and show a willingness to fulfill the obligations stipulated by the relevant agreements. The creation of the structure was preceded by the establishment of the Eurasian Economic Community, as well as the Customs Union (which continues to function as one of the structures of the EAEU).
How did the idea of forming the EAEU come about?
As evidenced by a number of sources, the state that was the first to initiate the processes of economic integration that grew into the establishment of the EAEU was Kazakhstan. Nursultan Nazarbayev expressed a corresponding idea at a speech at Moscow State University in 1994. Subsequently, the concept was supported by other former Soviet republics - Russia, Belarus, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan.
The main advantage of a state being part of the Eurasian Economic Union is freedom economic activity entities registered in it on the territory of all member countries of the union. It is expected that a single trade space will soon be formed on the basis of the EAEU institutions, characterized by common standards and norms for doing business.
Is there room for political interaction?
So, what is the EAEU, a purely economic structure, or an association that may be characterized by a political component of integration? Currently and in the near future, as evidenced by various sources, it would be more correct to talk about the first interpretation of the essence of the union. That is, the political aspect is excluded. Countries will integrate in pursuit of economic interests.
There is evidence of initiatives regarding the creation of certain supranational parliamentary structures within the EAEU. But the Republic of Belarus and Kazakhstan, as evidenced by a number of sources, do not consider the possibility of their participation in building the respective countries. They want to maintain full sovereignty, agreeing only to economic integration.
At the same time, it is obvious to many experts and ordinary people how close the political relations of the countries that are members of the EAEU are. The composition of this structure is formed by the closest allies who have no publicly expressed fundamental disagreements regarding difficult situation on the world stage. This allows some analysts to conclude that economic integration within the framework of the association under consideration would be very difficult if there were significant political differences between the countries participating in the association.
History of the EAEU
Studying some facts from the history of the association will help us better understand the specifics of the EAEU (what kind of organization it is). In 1995, the heads of several states - Belarus, the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, and a little later - Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, formalized agreements establishing the Customs Union. On their basis, the Eurasian Economic Community, or EurAsEC, was established in 2000. In 2010, a new association appeared - the Customs Union. In 2012, the Common Economic Space opened - first with the participation of the states that are members of the Customs Union, then Armenia and Kyrgyzstan joined the structure.
In 2014, Russia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus signed an agreement on the creation of the EAEU. Later Armenia and Kyrgyzstan joined it. The provisions of the relevant document came into force in 2015. The EAEU Customs Union continues to function, as we noted above. It includes the same countries as the EAEU.
Progressive development
Thus, the member states of the EAEU - the Republic of Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan - began to interact long before the corresponding association was established in modern form. According to a number of analysts, the Eurasian Economic Union is an example of an international organization with a progressive, systematic development of integration processes, which can determine the significant stability of the corresponding structure.
Stages of development of the EAEU
Several stages of development of the Eurasian Economic Union have been identified. The first is the establishment of a free trade zone, the development of norms according to which trade between the EAEU member countries can be carried out without duties. At the same time, each state retains independence in terms of conducting trade with third countries.
The next stage in the development of the EAEU is the formation of the Customs Union, which involves the formation of an economic space within which the movement of goods will be carried out unhindered. At the same time, foreign trade rules that are common to all member countries of the association should also be determined.
The most important stage in the development of the union is the formation of a single market. It is expected that it will be created within the framework of which it will be possible to freely exchange not only goods, but also services, capital and personnel - between the member states of the association.
The next stage is the formation of an economic union, the participants of which will be able to coordinate the priorities of implementing economic policy among themselves.
After the listed tasks are solved, it remains to achieve complete economic integration of the states included in the association. This involves the creation of a supranational structure that will determine priorities in building economic and social policies in all countries included in the union.
Advantages of the EAEU
Let’s take a closer look at the key benefits that EAEU members receive. We noted above that among the key ones is the freedom of economic activity of economic entities that are registered in any state of the union throughout the entire territory of the EAEU. But this is far from the only advantage of the state joining the organization we are studying.
EAEU members will have the opportunity to:
Take advantage of low prices for many goods, as well as reduced costs associated with the transportation of goods;
Develop markets more dynamically by increasing competition;
Increase labor productivity;
Increase the volume of the economy due to increased demand for manufactured goods;
Provide employment for citizens.
GDP growth prospects
Even for such economically powerful players as Russia, the EAEU is the most important factor in economic growth. Russia's GDP, according to some economists, may, thanks to the country's entry into the association under consideration, receive a very powerful growth stimulus. Other EAEU member countries—Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Belarus—can achieve impressive indicators of GDP growth.
Social aspect of integration
In addition to the positive economic effect, the EAEU member countries are expected to integrate in the social aspect as well. International business activities, as many experts believe, will contribute to the establishment of partnerships and stimulate strengthening the friendship of nations. Integration processes are facilitated by the common Soviet past of the peoples living in the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union. The cultural and, what is very important, linguistic proximity of the EAEU states is obvious. The composition of the organization is formed by countries in which the Russian language is familiar to the majority of the population. Thus, many factors can contribute to the successful solution of the tasks facing the heads of state of the Eurasian Economic Union.
Supranational structures
The Treaty on the EAEU has been signed, it’s up to its implementation. Among most important tasks within the framework of the development of the Eurasian Economic Union - the creation of a number of supranational institutions whose activities will be aimed at promoting economic integration processes. According to a number of public sources, the formation of some basic institutions of the EAEU is expected. What structures could these be?
First of all, these are various commissions:
Economics;
For raw materials (she will set prices, as well as quotas for goods and fuel, coordinate policies in the field of precious metals circulation);
For interstate financial and industrial associations and enterprises;
By entering the monetary unit for calculations;
On environmental issues.
It is also planned to create a special Fund, whose competence will include cooperation in the most different areas: in economics, in the field of development of science and technology. It is expected that this organization will deal with issues of financing various studies and help participants in cooperation in resolving a wide range of issues - legal, financial or, for example, environmental.
Other important supranational structures of the EAEU that are planned to be created are the International Investment Bank, as well as the arbitration of the Eurasian Economic Union.
Among the successfully created associations that are part of the governance structure of the EAEU - Let us study the features of its activities in more detail.
Eurasian Economic Commission
It can be noted that the EEC was created in 2011, that is, even before the agreement on the creation of the EAEU was signed. It was founded by Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus. Initially, this organization was created to manage processes at the level of such a structure as the Customs Union. The EAEU is a structure in the development of which the Commission is called upon to directly participate now.
The EEC has established a council and a board. The first structure should include deputy heads of government of the member states of the association. The board should consist of three people from EAEU member countries. The Commission provides for the creation of separate departments.
The Eurasian Economic Commission is the most important, but not the most important supranational governing body of the EAEU. It is subordinate to the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council. Let's look at the key facts about him.
This structure, like the Eurasian Economic Commission, was created several years before the states signed the agreement on the creation of the EAEU. Thus, for a long time it was considered a supranational body within the structure of the Customs Union, as well as the Common Economic Space. The Council is formed by the heads of the EAEU member states. It must meet at least once a year for top level. The heads of government of the member countries of the association must meet at least 2 times a year. A peculiarity of the functioning of the Council is that decisions are made in a consensus format. The approved provisions are mandatory for implementation in the EAEU member countries.
Prospects for the EAEU
How do analysts assess the prospects for the development of the EAEU? We noted above that some experts believe that simultaneously with economic integration, political rapprochement of the member states of the association is inevitable. There are experts who share this point of view. There are experts who completely disagree with her. The main argument of those analysts who see prospects for the politicization of the EAEU is that Russia, as the leading economic player in the association, will in one way or another influence the decisions made by the authorities of the EAEU member states. Opponents of this point of view believe that, on the contrary, it is not in the interests of the Russian Federation to show excessive interest in the politicization of the corresponding international association.
Provided that a balance is maintained between the economic and political components in the EAEU, the prospects for the union, based on a number of objective indicators, are assessed by many analysts as very positive. Thus, the total GDP of the member states of the structure under consideration will be comparable to the indicators of the leading economies of the world. Taking into account the scientific and resource potential of the EAEU, the volume of economic systems of the member countries of the union can grow significantly in the future.
Global collaboration
According to a number of analysts, the prospects for cooperation with the EAEU are attractive for countries that seem to be far from the economic space formed by the countries that signed the EAEU treaty - Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Belarus and Armenia. For example, Vietnam recently signed a free trade agreement with the EAEU.
For cooperation Syria, Egypt. This gives analysts reason to say that the Eurasian Economic Union can become a powerful player in the world market.
Every year the world moves further along the path of globalization and integration. Ties within economic and political unions are becoming stronger, and new interstate associations are emerging. One of such organizations is the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). Let's learn more about the work of this regional association.
The essence of the EAEU
What is the Eurasian Economic Union? This is an international association aimed at the economic integration of a number of countries located in Europe and Asia. Currently, it only includes a number of states of the former Soviet Union, but this does not mean that, theoretically, the EAEU cannot expand beyond the borders of the former USSR.
It should be noted that members of the Eurasian Economic Union are expanding cooperation among themselves not only in economic terms, but also in political and cultural aspects.
Organizational goals
The main goal that the Eurasian Economic Union sets for itself is to deepen economic interaction between its member countries. This is expressed in local tasks, such as stimulating trade circulation between countries, removing customs and tax restrictions on trade, developing cooperation and developing common economic projects. The result of deepening cooperation should be the growth of the economies of the participating countries and an increase in the living standards of their citizens.
The main tool for achieving the strategic goal is to ensure free trade, which is expressed in the unimpeded movement of goods, capital, labor and other resources within the borders of the EAEU.
Background of creation
Let's find out how such an organization as the Eurasian Economic Union was formed.
The creation of the CIS marked the beginning of the reintegration of states in the vastness of the former USSR. The agreement on the formation of this entity was signed in December 1991 between the heads of the RSFSR, Belarus and Ukraine. Later, until 1994 inclusive, all Soviet republics, except the Baltic countries, joined it. True, Turkmenistan takes part in the organization as an association; the Ukrainian parliament has never ratified the agreement, therefore, although the country is a founder and participant in the association, it is not legally a member, and Georgia left the CIS in 2008.
At the same time, during their work, the Commonwealth institutions have shown their low efficiency. The decisions of the CIS bodies were actually not binding on its members and were often not implemented, and the economic effect of cooperation was minimal. This has forced the governments of some countries in the region to think about creating more effective systems of interaction.
The President of Kazakhstan made a statement about the need to create a closer union than the CIS, which would imply systemic integration of the economies of the participating countries, as well as a common defense policy. By analogy with European Union he named a hypothetical organization Eurasian Union. As we can see, the name stuck and was used in the future to create a new economic structure.
The next step on the path of mutual integration was the signing in 1996 of the Agreement on Deepening Integration between the leaders of Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. Its action covered both economic and humanitarian spheres.
EurAsEC is the predecessor of the EAEU
In 2001, the integration aspirations of the above countries, as well as Tajikistan, which joined them, were expressed in the creation of a full-fledged international organization - the Eurasian Economic Community. In 2006, Uzbekistan became a member of the EurAsEC, but only after two years it suspended its participation in the organization. Ukraine, Moldova and Armenia received observer status.
The purpose of this organization was to deepen economic cooperation in the region, as well as to implement some tasks that the CIS could not cope with. It was a natural continuation of the integration processes that were launched by the 1996 agreement, and the Eurasian Economic Union was the result of common efforts.
Organization of the Customs Union
One of the main tasks of the EurAsEC was the organization of the Customs Union. It provided for a single customs territory. That is, within the borders of this interstate association, customs duties were not levied when moving goods.
The agreement on the formation of the Customs Union between representatives of Kazakhstan, Russia and Belarus was signed back in 2007. But before the organization could begin to fully function, each of the participating countries had to make appropriate changes to their domestic legislation.
TS began its activities in January 2010. First of all, this was expressed in the formation of identical customs tariffs. The Unified Customs Code came into effect in July. It served as the foundation on which the entire TS system rests. This is how the Customs Code of the Eurasian Economic Union was formed, which is still in force today.
In 2011, a common customs territory began to function, which meant the abolition of all customs restrictions between the CU countries.
During 2014-2015, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia also joined the Customs Union. Representatives of the authorities of Tunisia and Syria expressed their desire for their countries to join the CU organization in the future.
The Customs Union and the Eurasian Economic Union are, in fact, components of the same regional integration process.
Education of the EAEU
The Eurasian Economic Union is the final result of the integration aspirations of a number of countries of the former Soviet Union. The decision to create this organization was made at the summit of the heads of EurAsEC members back in 2010. Since 2012, the Common Economic Space began to function, on the basis of which the formation of the EAEU was planned.
In May 2014, an agreement was agreed between the heads of Kazakhstan, Russia and Belarus on the creation of this organization. In fact, it came into force at the beginning of 2015. Due to this fact, the EurAsEC was liquidated.
Participating countries
Initially, the founding countries of the EurAsEC organization were the states that were most interested in economic integration in the region. These are Kazakhstan, Belarus and Russia. Later they were joined by Armenia and Kyrgyzstan.
Thus, currently the member states of the Eurasian Economic Union are represented by five countries.
Extension
The United Eurasian Economic Union is not a structure with fixed borders. Hypothetically, any country that meets the requirements of the organization can become its member. Thus, in January 2015, Armenia became a member of the union, and in August Kyrgyzstan joined the organization.
The most likely candidate to join the community is Tajikistan. This country works closely with EAEU states within the framework of other regional organizations and does not remain aloof from integration processes. Tajikistan is a member of the CIS, an organization collective defense The CSTO was at one time a full member of the EurAsEC community, which ceased to exist after the EAEU began functioning. In 2014, the President of Tajikistan announced the need to study the possibility of the country joining the EAEU.
In 2012-2013, negotiations were held on the possible future entry into the organization of Ukraine, since regional cooperation without this country, according to experts, could not give the maximum effect. But the political elite of the state was committed to integration in the European direction. After the overthrow of the Yanukovych government in 2014, the possibility of Ukraine joining the EAEU can only be realistic in the long term.
Controls
Members of the Eurasian Economic Union formed the governing bodies of this international organization.
The Supreme Eurasian Economic Council is the governing body of the EAEU at the highest level. It includes heads that represent the states of the Eurasian Economic Union. This body resolves all the most important strategic issues. He holds a meeting once a year. Decisions are made exclusively unanimously. The countries of the Eurasian Economic Union are obliged to comply with all decisions of the Supreme Council of the EAEU.
Naturally, a body that meets once a year cannot fully ensure the constant functioning of the entire organization. For these purposes, a commission of the Eurasian Economic Union (Eurasian Economic Commission) was created. The tasks of this structure include the preparation and implementation of specific integration measures, which are provided for by the general development strategy developed by the Supreme Council. Currently, the commission employs 1,071 people who have received the status of international employees.
The executive body of the commission is the Collegium. It consists of fourteen people. In fact, each of them is an analogue of ministers in national governments and is responsible for a specific area of activity: economy, energy, customs cooperation, trade, etc.
Economic interaction
The main goal of creating the EAEU is to deepen economic integration between the countries of the region. Therefore, it is not surprising that economics comes first in the organization’s tasks.
Within the boundaries of the organization, the Customs Code of the Eurasian Economic Union, adopted back in 2010, before the start of the functioning of the EAEU, is in force. It provides for the free movement of goods without customs control in the territory of all countries of the organization.
The use of economic instruments provided for by the EAEU development concept is intended to reduce the cost of goods that cross the border due to the absence of a customs margin on them; increase competition, which should cause an increase in product quality; bring tax legislation in all countries to a common denominator; increase the GDP of the organization’s members and the welfare of their citizens.
Criticism
At the same time, there are many critical reviews of the work of the EAEU among economic analysts. Moreover, they exist both among ardent opponents of the existence of such an organization, and among its moderate supporters.
Thus, the fact that the project was actually launched before all the nuances of its mechanisms had been worked out and agreements had been reached on the prospects of the EAEU has been criticized. It is also noted that in fact the union is not so much pursuing economic goals, as much as it is political, but in economic terms it is not beneficial for all its members, including Russia.
Prospects
At the same time, the prospects for the EAEU with making the right choice the economic course and coordination of actions between the participants look quite good. A significant economic effect is noticeable even under the conditions of sanctions imposed on Russia by Western countries. In the future, it is planned that the effect of participation in the EAEU will be expressed in a 25 percent increase in GDP for all its participants.
In addition, there is a possibility of further expansion of the organization. Many countries of the world are interested in cooperation with the EAEU without joining the union. For example, a free trade zone will soon begin to operate between the community and Vietnam. Interest in establishing similar relationships The governments of Iran, China, India, Egypt, Pakistan and a number of other states also expressed their views.
Subtotals
It is still too early to talk about how successful the implementation of the EAEU has been, because the organization has been functioning for just over a year. At the same time, certain intermediate results can be drawn right now.
It is a great achievement that the organization actually works and is not a structure created just for show. This is especially significant in the context of international economic sanctions against the country, which, in fact, is the cementing basis of the union - Russia.
At the same time, despite many positive aspects, it should be noted that the EAEU does not function as clearly as those who saw the future of this organization only in rosy colors would like. There are many disagreements both at the level of senior management of the participating countries and in terms of agreeing on small details, which leads to a decrease in the effectiveness of the economic return of this project as a whole.
But let’s hope that the shortcomings will be resolved over time, and the EAEU will turn into a clear mechanism that works effectively for the benefit of all its members.