Fairy tales

Eurasian Economic Union - what is it? EAEU member countries. Eurasian Economic Union: composition and chronology Since the formation of the Eurasian Economic Union begins

An agreement was signed between Russia and Crimea on the admission of Crimea to the Russian Federation and the formation of new Russian subjects in Moscow.

An agreement was signed between Russia and Crimea on the admission of Crimea to the Russian Federation in Moscow.

Moscow. March 18. website – On Tuesday in Moscow, an agreement was signed between Russia and the Republic of Crimea on the admission of the peninsula to the Russian Federation and the formation of new Russian subjects.

The document was signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chairman of the State Council of Crimea Vladimir Konstantinov, Head of the Council of Ministers of the Republic Sergei Aksenov and “People’s Mayor” of Sevastopol Alexei Chaly.

Two new regions

As follows from the text of the document posted on the Kremlin website, Crimea is considered accepted into the Russian Federation from the date of signing the agreement. From this moment on, two new entities are formed within the Russian Federation - the Republic of Crimea and the federal city of Sevastopol. Russian, Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar are declared the state languages of the Republic of Crimea.

From the day of Crimea’s admission to Russia, Russian legislative acts come into force on the territory of the republic. The subjects' own regulations, which do not contradict the Constitution of the Russian Federation, will also be in force during the transition period, which will end on January 1, 2015. It is expected that during this period the issues of integration of new entities into the economic, financial, credit and legal systems of Russia will be resolved. During the transition period, it is also expected to fully regulate the issues of performing military duties and performing military service on the territory of the new constituent entities of the Russian Federation. At the same time, it is already known that Russian citizens drafted into the army in Crimea and Sevastopol will serve on the territory of these subjects until 2016.

Elections to government bodies in Crimea and Sevastopol will be held on the second Sunday of September 2015. Until the elections, according to the document, the State Council of the Republic and the Legislative Assembly of Sevastopol will continue to work.

Citizens of Ukraine living in Crimea, after signing the agreement, become Russians if they do not declare their desire to retain their existing citizenship within a month. The land border of Crimea with Ukraine is declared the border of the Russian Federation. The delimitation of maritime spaces in the Black and Azov Seas after the admission of Crimea to Russia will be carried out on the basis of the principles of international law, it follows from the signed document.

"Original Russian land"

The agreement with Crimea, which must now be ratified by parliament, was signed after an extraordinary address by the president to the Federal Assembly. During it, Putin also announced that he was introducing to parliament a law on the inclusion of Crimea and Sevastopol into Russia.

“I submit to the Federal Assembly and ask to consider a constitutional law on the admission into Russia of two new subjects of the Federation - the Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol,” Putin said on Tuesday in an address to the Federal Assembly. His words were met with thunderous applause.

Putin emphasized that he is introducing this federal law based on the results of the Crimean referendum and relying on the will of the people. He proposed that Russian legislators ratify the treaty on the annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol.

During his address, Putin called the location of Crimea outside Russia’s borders “a blatant historical injustice.” “All these years, citizens and many public figures have repeatedly raised this topic: they said that Crimea is an original Russian land, and Sevastopol is a Russian city. Yes, we understood all this well, we felt it in our hearts and souls, but it was necessary proceed from the existing realities, and build good neighborly relations with independent Ukraine on a new basis,” he said.

According to the head of state, the Russian-speaking population of Ukraine is tired of attempts at their “forced assimilation.” “Over and over again, attempts have been made to deprive Russians of their historical memory, and sometimes even their native language, to make them the object of forced assimilation,” Putin said.

He emphasized that Russia will always protect the interests of Russian-speaking citizens. “Millions of Russian people, Russian-speaking citizens live and will live in Ukraine, and Russia will always protect their interests by political, diplomatic, legal means. However, first of all, Ukraine itself should be interested in ensuring that the rights and interests of these people are guaranteed, in this a guarantee of stability, Ukrainian statehood and the territorial integrity of the country,” he said.

At the same time, Putin emphasized that Russia does not want the collapse of Ukraine. “I want you to hear me, dear friends. Do not believe those who scare you with Russia, who shout that other regions will follow Crimea. We do not want the division of Ukraine. We do not need this,” he said.

There was no aggression or intervention in Crimea, the Russian president emphasized. According to him, Russia did not send troops into Crimea, but only strengthened its group, without exceeding the maximum staffing level provided for by the international treaty.

“They are telling us about some kind of Russian intervention in Crimea, aggression. It’s strange to hear this. I don’t remember a single case in history where the intervention took place without one single shot and without casualties,” he said. Putin also thanked the Ukrainian military personnel “who did not commit bloodshed and did not stain themselves with blood.”

The Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) is an international integration economic association (union), the agreement on the creation of which was signed on May 29, 2014 and comes into force on January 1, 2015. The union included Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus. The EAEU was created on the basis of the Customs Union of the Eurasian Economic Community (EurAsEC) to strengthen the economies of the participating countries and “bring closer to each other”, to modernize and increase the competitiveness of the participating countries in the world market. The EAEU member states plan to continue economic integration in the coming years.

History of the creation of the Eurasian Economic Union

In 1995, the presidents of Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia and later joining states - Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan signed the first agreements on the creation of the Customs Union. Based on these agreements, the Eurasian Economic Community (EurAsEC) was created in 2000.

On October 6, 2007, in Dushanbe (Tajikistan), Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia signed an agreement on the creation of a single customs territory and the Customs Union Commission as a single permanent governing body of the Customs Union.

The Eurasian Customs Union or the Customs Union of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia was born on January 1, 2010. The customs union was launched as the first step towards the formation of a broader European Union-type economic union of former Soviet republics.

The creation of the Eurasian Customs Union was guaranteed by 3 different treaties signed in 1995, 1999 and 2007. The first agreement in 1995 guaranteed its creation, the second in 1999 guaranteed its formation, and the third in 2007 announced the creation of a single customs territory and the formation of a customs union.

Access of products to the territory of the Customs Union was granted after checking these products for compliance with the requirements of the technical regulations of the Customs Union that are applicable to these products. As of December 2012, 31 Technical Regulations of the Customs Union have been developed, which cover various types of products, some of which have already entered into force, and some of which will enter into force before 2015. Some technical regulations will still be developed.

Before the Technical Regulations came into force, the basis for access to the market of the member countries of the Customs Union were the following rules:

1. National certificate - for product access to the market of the country where this certificate was issued.

2. Certificate of the Customs Union - a certificate issued in accordance with the “List of products subject to mandatory assessment (confirmation) of conformity within the Customs Union” - such a certificate is valid in all three member countries of the Customs Union.

Since November 19, 2011, member states have implemented the work of a joint commission (Eurasian Economic Commission) to strengthen closer economic ties to create the Eurasian Economic Union by 2015.

On January 1, 2012, the three states formed the Common Economic Space to promote further economic integration. All three countries have ratified a basic package of 17 agreements governing the launch of the Common Economic Space (CES).

On May 29, 2014, an agreement on the creation of the Eurasian Economic Union was signed in Astana (Kazakhstan).

On January 1, 2015, the EAEU began to function as part of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. On January 2, 2015, Armenia became a member of the EAEU. Kyrgyzstan has announced its intention to participate in the EAEU.

Economy of the Eurasian Economic Union

The macroeconomic effect from the integration of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan into the EAEU is created due to:

Reduced prices for goods due to reduced costs of transporting raw materials or exporting finished products.

Stimulating “healthy” competition in the common market of the EAEU through an equal level of economic development.

Increasing competition in the common market of the member countries of the Customs Union, thanks to the entry of new countries into the market.

Increase in average wages due to reduced costs and increased labor productivity.

Increasing production due to increased demand for goods.

Increasing the well-being of the people of the EAEU countries, thanks to lower food prices and increased employment.

Increasing the return on investment of new technologies and products due to increased market volume.

At the same time, the signed version of the agreement on the creation of the EAEU was of a compromise nature, and therefore a number of planned measures were not implemented in full. In particular, the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) and the Eurasian Economic Court did not receive broad powers to monitor compliance with the agreements. If the EEC resolutions are not implemented, the controversial issue is considered by the Eurasian Economic Court, whose decisions are only advisory in nature, and the issue is finally resolved at the level of the Council of Heads of State. In addition, pressing issues on the creation of a unified financial regulator, on energy trade policy, as well as on the problem of the existence of exemptions and restrictions on trade between EAEU members were postponed until 2025 or indefinitely.

Characteristics of the EAEU countries (as of 2014)

Countries	Population, million people	Size of real GDP, billion US dollars	GDP per capita, thousand US dollars	Inflation, %	Unemployment rate, %	Trade balance, billion US dollars
Russia	142.5	2057.0	14.4	7.8	5.2	189.8
Belarus	9.6	77.2	8.0	18.3	0.7	-2.6
Kazakhstan	17.9	225.6	12.6	6.6	5.0	36.7

Source - CIA World Factbook

Governing bodies of the Eurasian Economic Union

The governing bodies of the EAEU are the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council and the Eurasian Economic Commission.

The Supreme Eurasian Economic Council is the highest supranational body of the EAEU. The council includes heads of state and government. The Supreme Council meets at the level of heads of state at least once a year, at the level of heads of government - at least twice a year. Decisions are made by consensus. The decisions taken become binding in all participating states. The Council determines the composition and powers of other regulatory structures.

The Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) is one permanent regulatory body (supranational governing body) in the EAEU. The main task of the EEC is to provide conditions for the development and functioning of the EAEU, as well as the development of economic integration initiatives within the EAEU.

The powers of the Eurasian Economic Commission are defined in Article 3 of the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Commission of November 18, 2010. All rights and functions of the previously existing Customs Union Commission were delegated to the Eurasian Economic Commission.

Within the competence of the Commission:

customs tariffs and non-tariff regulation;
customs administration;
technical regulation;
sanitary, veterinary and phytosanitary measures;
crediting and distribution of import customs duties;
establishment of trade regimes with third countries;
statistics of foreign and domestic trade;
macroeconomic policy;
competition policy;
industrial and agricultural subsidies;
energy policy;
natural monopolies;
state and municipal procurement;
domestic trade in services and investment;
transport and transportation;
monetary policy;
intellectual property and copyright;
migration policy;
financial markets (banking, insurance, foreign exchange and stock markets);
and some other areas.

The Commission ensures the implementation of international treaties that form the legal basis of the Eurasian Economic Union.

The Commission is also the depository of international treaties that formed the legal basis of the Customs Union and the Common Economic Space, and now the EAEU, as well as decisions of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council.

Within its competence, the Commission adopts non-binding documents, such as recommendations, and can also make decisions that are binding in the EAEU member countries.

The Commission's budget is made up of contributions from member states and approved by the heads of EAEU member states.

Possible new members of the Eurasian Economic Union

The main contenders for joining the EAEU are Armenia and Kyrgyzstan. In July 2014, news appeared that Armenia would sign an agreement to join the Eurasian Economic Union before September 10, 2014. There is information that negotiations between Armenia and the founding countries of the EAEU and the Eurasian Economic Commission have been completed. The agreement on Armenia’s accession to the EAEU is in the hands of the governments of Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus, where it is going through the necessary bureaucratic stages, and after the governments’ decision, the question of where the presidents of Armenia and the EAEU countries will meet to sign the agreement will be raised.

It is also reported that Kyrgyzstan may soon join the EAEU member countries. However, no specific deadlines have been set for this country’s entry into the EAEU (previously the date was announced - until the end of 2014). In addition, the population of the country, apparently, is not particularly keen to join the EAEU. This conclusion can be made based on civic activity during the collection of signatures for a petition in support of Kyrgyzstan’s accession to the Customs Union and the EAEU. To date, only 38 people have signed the appeal.

Russians are also suspicious of Kyrgyzstan's possible accession to the Eurasian Economic Union. This is evidenced by the results of a survey conducted by the All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion (VTsIOM). According to researchers, only 20% of respondents were in favor of Kyrgyzstan joining the union, and Moldova had the same number of votes. The most desirable country that Russians would like to see as an ally turned out to be Armenia. 45% of respondents voted for it.

Every fifth person expects Azerbaijan and Moldova to join the EAEU (23% and 20%, respectively). Only 17% of survey participants are in favor of Uzbekistan joining the EAEU, and 14% of Tajikistan and Georgia each. Respondents were least likely to speak out in favor of attracting Ukraine to the Eurasian Economic Union - 10%. And 13% of respondents believe that the EAEU should not be expanded yet.

Public opinion poll in the CIS regarding integration

Since 2012, the Eurasian Development Bank (established in Russia and Kazakhstan) has been conducting regular surveys of the opinions of residents of individual states regarding Eurasian integration projects. The following question was asked to residents of individual countries: “Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia united in the Customs Union, which freed trade between the three countries from duties, and created a Single Economic Space (essentially a single market of the three countries). How do you feel about this decision?

The results of the total “profitable” and “very profitable” answers are given below:

As you can see, the idea of creating a Customs Union and the Eurasian Economic Union is generally approved and looks “profitable” in the eyes of the majority of the population in almost everyone, with the exception of Azerbaijan, the CIS countries and even Georgia.

Meanwhile, the United States in its foreign policy opposes the Customs Union and the EAEU, arguing that this is an attempt to restore Russian dominance in the post-Soviet space and create a union like the USSR.

(EAEU) is an economic union, which, as part of Eurasian integration, is being created on January 1, 2015 on the basis of the Customs Union of Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus.

Cooperation in the field of interstate integration in the economic sphere in the post-Soviet space has been ongoing since the late 1990s.

On February 26, 1999, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan signed the Treaty on the Customs Union and Common Economic Space. This document, without specifying the timing of implementation, assumed the abolition of customs controls at internal borders, the implementation of a common economic policy and the formation of a common market for goods, services, labor and capital, the unification of national legislation, and the implementation of a coordinated social, scientific and technological policy.

On October 10, 2000, the Eurasian Economic Community (EurAsEC) was formed (the agreement entered into force on May 30, 2001). The EurAsEC includes Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan. In 2006, protocols on accession to the Treaty establishing the EurAsEC of Uzbekistan were signed. In 2008, Uzbekistan's membership in the EurAsEC was suspended.

In 2002, Ukraine and Moldova received observer status at the EurAsEC, and in 2003, Armenia. In December 2003, the EurAsEC was granted observer status in the UN General Assembly.

On August 16, 2006 in Sochi, at a meeting of the heads of the EurAsEC member states, a decision was made to create a Customs Union (CU) of three states within the EurAsEC - Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia.

On November 27, 2009, the Agreement on the Customs Code was signed. The Unified Customs Tariff of the Customs Union (entered into force on January 1, 2010), the Unified Commodity Nomenclature for Foreign Economic Activity and other international documents aimed at implementing unified customs tariff regulation were approved. A decision was made to begin functioning on July 1, 2010 of the single customs territory of the Customs Union. On July 6, 2010, the Customs Code of the Customs Union came into force.

On July 1, 2011, the Customs Union began to function fully: customs control on the internal borders between Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan was completely removed, all types of customs control and clearance were transferred to the external border of the Customs Union.

On December 19, 2009 in Almaty (Kazakhstan), at an informal meeting of the heads of state members of the Customs Union, a decision was made to approve the Action Plan for the formation of the Common Economic Space (CES) of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia.

On February 2, 2012, the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) began to function - a permanent regulatory body of the Customs Union and the Common Economic Space.

During the meeting of the presidents of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan in Moscow, a declaration on Eurasian economic integration was signed, in which the creation of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) was proclaimed as one of the main long-term goals of Eurasian economic integration.

On May 29, 2012 in Astana, at a meeting of the heads of state members of the Customs Union, a work plan for the preparation of a draft Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union was approved.

It is expected that the EAEU will begin to function on January 1, 2015, taking the place of the abolishing EurAsEC.

The area of the EAEU will exceed 20 million square kilometers, the population living on its territory will be about 170 million people.

The trilateral agreement on the creation of the EAEU is planned to be signed on May 29, 2014 at the summit in Astana.

The single financial regulator of the Eurasian Economic Union, its headquarters will be located in Almaty (Kazakhstan).

The material was prepared based on information from RIA Novosti and open sources

Among the largest modern international associations is the Eurasian. Formally, it was 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 the freedom of economic activity of 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? At the moment and in the near future, as various sources testify, it would be more correct to talk about the first interpretation of the essence of the unification. 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 differences regarding the 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 its 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 defined. 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 the most important tasks within the framework of the development of the Eurasian Economic Union is 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, the competence of which will include cooperation in a variety of areas: in the economy, 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 the 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 should meet at the highest level at least once a year. 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.

Eurasian Economic Union (hereinafter - EAEU)- an international organization for regional economic integration with international legal personality and established by the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union. The EAEU ensures freedom of movement of goods, services, capital and labor, as well as the implementation of a coordinated, consistent and unified policy in sectors of the economy.

The goals of creating the EAEU are:

comprehensive modernization, cooperation and increasing the competitiveness of national economies;
creating conditions for the stable development of the economies of the member states in the interests of improving the living standards of their population.

Within the EAEU:

In relation to third EAEU countries, uniform non-tariff regulation measures are applied, such as:

prohibition of import and (or) export of goods;
quantitative restrictions on the import and (or) export of goods;
exclusive right to export and (or) import goods;
automatic licensing (supervision) of export and (or) import of goods;
permitting procedure for the import and (or) export of goods.

Member states of the Eurasian Economic Union

History of the formation of the Eurasian Economic Union

The official start date for the formation of the Customs Union can be considered 1995, when an Agreement on the creation of the Union was concluded between the Russian Federation, the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of Belarus. The purpose of this Agreement was to establish economic interaction between the parties, ensure free exchange of goods and fair competition.

On February 26, 1999, the Agreement on the Customs Union and the Common Economic Space was signed. The parties to the Treaty were Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and since 2006 - Uzbekistan. Until the early 2000s, the participating countries were actively engaged in the process of establishing cooperation in various fields of activity (including sociocultural, scientific).

In 2000, a decision was made to establish the Eurasian Economic Community (EurAsEC). The members of the community were the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Russian Federation and the Republic of Tajikistan.

In 2003, the Agreement on the formation of the Common Economic Space (SES) was signed. Work began on preparing the legal framework for the SES, which later became the basis for the functioning of the Union. The most important events in the process of forming the Customs Union were two informal summits of the heads of state of the EurAsEC.

At an informal summit on August 16, 2006, the heads of state of the EurAsEC decided to form a Customs Union within the EurAsEC, according to which Kazakhstan, Belarus and Russia were instructed to prepare a legal framework. A year later, on October 6, 2007, at the EurAsEC summit, a package of documents was approved and signed, marking the beginning of the creation of the legal framework of the Customs Union (agreements on the creation of the Single Customs Territory and the formation of the Customs Union, on the Commission of the Customs Union, protocols on amendments to the Treaty on the Establishment EurAsEC, on the procedure for the entry into force of international treaties aimed at forming the legal framework of the customs union, withdrawal from them and accession to them). In addition, an Action Plan for the formation of a customs union within the EurAsEC was approved.

Officially, on January 1, 2010, the Customs Union of the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation began to function. The united states began to apply a single customs tariff and uniform non-tariff regulation measures in foreign trade with third countries, and also streamlined tariff benefits and preferences for goods from third countries, and the Customs Code of the Customs Union came into force. Gradually, customs clearance and customs control began to be abolished at the internal borders of the participating countries of the Customs Union, and points for accepting notifications were eliminated.

In 2012, international treaties came into force, forming the legal basis for the Common Economic Space of the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation, creating the basis for the free movement of not only goods, but also services, capital and labor.

With the signing of the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union on May 29, 2014, the participating countries of the Customs Union and the Common Economic Space marked the beginning of a new, closer interaction. On October 10, 2014, the Republic of Armenia joined the Treaty on the EAEU. On December 23, 2014, the Treaty on the Accession of the Kyrgyz Republic to the EAEU was signed.

Structure of the unified customs legislation of the Eurasian Economic Union

In connection with the formation of the regulatory legal framework of the Eurasian Economic Union, the customs legislation of the participating states is changing. First of all, in addition to the current national legislation, two more levels of regulation have appeared: international agreements of the member states of the Customs Union and Decisions of the Customs Union Commission (currently the Eurasian Economic Commission). At the moment, the customs legislation of the EAEU is a four-level system:

Customs Code of the Eurasian Economic Union

The transition to a higher level of integration required major changes in the legal and regulatory framework of the Union. Work on the creation of a new Customs Code took several years; the process required numerous approvals of amendments by the Union member states. On December 26, 2016, the Customs Code of the Eurasian Economic Union was adopted, which replaced the Customs Code of the Customs Union adopted in 2009. The new EAEU Labor Code came into force on January 1, 2018. The document combines many international treaties and agreements of the Customs Union (for example, the Agreement on determining the customs value of goods moved across the customs border of the Customs Union), which will lose force in whole or in part.

The EAEU Customs Code contains a number of new provisions relating not only to the structure of the Code itself (the new EAEU Customs Code contains 4 appendices, which were not in the CU Customs Code), but also to the rules of customs regulation in the Union. Thus, in the draft EAEU Customs Code, the conceptual apparatus was updated, the “single window” principle was introduced, the priority of electronic declaration was declared, some changes were made to customs procedures, the institution of an authorized economic operator was reformed, etc.