EEU proposes forming common economic space with EU

PanARMENIAN.Net - The Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) has proposed to the authorities of the European Union (EU) to start a dialogue on the establishment of a common economic space: a formal letter was sent to the EU Commission, TASS reports.

According to EEU Commissioner for the Development of Integration and Macroeconomics, Tatiana Valovaya, it was resolved to send a formal proposal to the EU Commission at the September 8 meeting of heads of the Union member states in Grodno.

Valovaya said the letter is only a “position paper:” it represents the EEC’s opinion.

Earlier on October 13, the Permanent Representative of Belarus to the EU Ambassador Andrey Yevdochenko and representatives of diplomatic missions of Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Russia met with Richard Shostak, diplomatic adviser to the chairman of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, in Brussels.

On behalf of the chairmanship of Belarus in the Eurasian Economic Union, Yevdochenko handed to the EU representative a letter by the Chairman of Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission Viktor Khristenko addressed to EC President Juncker.

The Permanent Representative also handed over an aide-memoire, titled “Eurasian Economic Union - European Union: contours of co-operation,” approved by the Eurasian intergovernmental Council.

The Eurasian Economic Union is an economic union of states located primarily in northern Eurasia. A treaty aiming for the establishment of the EEU was signed on May 29, 2014 by the leaders of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia, and came into force on January 1, 2015. Treaties aiming for Armenia and Kyrgyzstan's accession to the Eurasian Economic Union were signed on October 9, 2014 and December 23, 2014, respectively, coming into force on January 2, 2015 and August 6, 2015.