Common energy markets, the sphere of services, the development of export and manufacturing cooperation are among the key items on the Eurasian Economic Union's agenda in 2015. Prime Minister of Belarus Andrei Kobyakov made the statement at the session of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in the Gorki residence near Moscow on 6 February.

Within the framework of the coordinated industrial policy Andrei Kobyakov mentioned the lack of real movement with regard to coordinated import-substitution measures.

“It is time for us to determine the destiny of the term ‘Eurasian Economic Union product'. All of us are extremely cautious about the initiative for now and Belarus is no exception,” said Andrei Kobyakov. “We may need to answer the question of who the domestic producers are if we are to unite efforts to promote their products, including beyond borders of the Eurasian Economic Union. We believe it is necessary to get down to the development of rules to determine the Eurasian Economic Union origin of products”.

The Prime Minister of Belarus underlined that Eurasian Economic Union member states should keep macroeconomics in mind, too. “The Belarusian side has no prepared recipes to implement a coordinated macroeconomic policy,” he said. “But the latest events in the region and the world on the whole require us to come up with coordinated actions in this matter. I believe that our relevant agencies, including the economy ministries and the national banks, should get involved in the work immediately”. Andrei Kobyakov suggested that the Eurasian Economic Commission should send an analysis of the implementation of arrangements on matters concerning the coordinated industrial policy and the agribusiness policy to the governments of the Eurasian Economic Union member states by late February. The analysis will have to contain concrete conclusions and proposals regarding the main directions of industrial cooperation within the framework of the Union, the existing problems and ways for their systemic resolution.

The Eurasian Economic Commission was also encouraged to send a concept of joint export incentives to the governments of the Union member states by 1 April.
According to Andrei Kobyakov, these measures may, among other things, include coordinated measures to support export, to develop joint distribution networks, use commodities and services of the member states within the framework of major investment projects in third countries. The measures may also include the joint participation in expos.

Apart from that, the Prime Minister of Belarus said it was necessary to instruct the Eurasian Economic Commission to present a report on progress on working out concepts for forming the common markets of electricity, natural gas, oil and oil products and the program for step-by-step liberalization of cabotage transportation at the next session of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council.

Kobyakov: Belarus will monitor work on energy market concepts in EEU

Belarus will closely monitor the development of concepts of the formation of energy markets in the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), Belarus' Premier Andrei Kobyakov told reporters following the first meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council at the Gorki residence of the Russian government on 6 February.

“Presiding in the EEU, Belarus will keep track of the elaboration of concepts of the formation of common energy markets and the program of gradual liberalization of transportation services,” Andrei Kobyakov said.

The Belarusian Prime Minister informed that as he presided the session of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council he put forward a number of specific proposals on the further promotion of the Eurasian integration. “There are plans to intensify the work of the Eurasian Economic Commission to remove exemptions and restrictions in the mutual trade in 2015. Belarus has reiterated many times that the work of the commission should be more efficient. This pertains to the trade in commodities and the most common types of services, including transportation services,” Andrei Kobyakov noted.

Belarus wants practical results from implementing the harmonized policy in manufacturing and agriculture and from the joint efforts to promote exports.

The Belarusian Premier informed that the session continued the work on the protocols to the agreement on Kyrgyzstan's accession to the EEU, discussed long-term approaches to the promotion of cooperation with the major trading partners outside the EEU, as well as plans to start marking individual products and the establishment of the Eurasian machine tool engineering center.

“The decisions we have made today will allow us to keep working on promoting the EEU, strengthening its positions in the global economic agenda and implementing specific projects aimed at building up the economic capacities of the Eurasian Economic Union,” Andrei Kobyakov said.

He expressed hope that the initiatives to be put forward by Belarus during its presidency would be upheld by the other EEU partners. “I am convinced that the establishment of a full-fledged economic union, free from exemptions and restrictions in the mutual trade in goods and services, with powerful industrial, agricultural, export and investment potential, is the result expected from the EEU by citizens of our states,” Andrei Kobyakov concluded.

Belarus prime minister approves of different-speed integration in ex-USSR

The availability of different-speed integration in the post-Soviet space allows resolving problems within the framework of various integration formats. The opinion was voiced by Prime Minister of Belarus Andrei Kobyakov after the first session of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in the Gorki residence near Moscow on 6 February.

“If we cannot handle something in the Commonwealth of Independent States, we deal with it in the Eurasian Economic Union. If that doesn't work, we resolve it in the Union State [of Belarus and Russia],” said Andrei Kobyakov.

He remarked that the Union State is still the most advanced integration project, which is often used as the engine for other integration processes. The CIS influences economic integration to a lesser degree, nevertheless, a free trade zone agreement has been signed within the framework of the Commonwealth of Independent States. Andrei Kobyakov mentioned the Eurasian Economic Union as the most advanced association from the point of view of economic integration. To confirm that he mentioned that the determination of the status of the Eurasian Economic Union product had been discussed at the session of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council among other things. The Prime Minister of Belarus explained that if any product is made in an EEU member state, it will be classified as domestic across the entire territory of the Eurasian Economic Union by default.

EEU member states reminded to share information about WTO talks

Belarus wants its Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) partners to honor their commitments to provide information about their WTO talks, Belarusian Premier Andrei Kobyakov said at the meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in Gorki near Moscow on 6 February.


“Belarus wants to openly discuss the fulfillment by the partners of their obligations to provide information about their WTO talks. These obligations are part of the multilateral trading system and were documented in the Customs Union Treaty,” Andrei Kobyakov said.

He reminded that the partners agreed to reconcile their plans on the WTO accession back in 2002. “Russia's tariff obligations were taken as a benchmark. The partners had no other agreements. Therefore, I would like to emphasize that if we have no idea how the WTO talks of our partners are proceeding, we will consider ourselves free from the obligation to harmonize and adopt additional commitments associated with the accession of our partners to the WTO,” Andrei Kobyakov noted.

EEC instructed to analyze reasons for Russia's bans

The Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) has been instructed to present a report by late February on the analysis of the causes that led to Russia's unilateral bans and restrictions and submit it to the governments of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), Belarusian Premier Andrei Kobyakov said at the meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in Moscow's Gorki on 6 February.

“The practice shows that we need to use coordinated mechanisms in the union's functioning given unilateral measures are introduced by a member state to protect its market from third countries. In this respect we expect concrete proposals from the EEC for finalizing the EEU legal framework. We should also analyze the role and powers of the Eurasian Economic Commission in addressing the issues of the kind,” Andrei Kobyakov said.

The Prime Minister of Belarus believes that the EEC report should include proposals for the commission to elaborate a mechanism to monitor the implementation of decisions adopted in the EEU as well as possible penalties for their non-fulfillment. There should also be envisaged the EEC responsibility for inefficient fulfillment of the monitoring.

Andrei Kobyakov suggested that the responsibility of the members of the EEC Board should be strengthened as well. “Members of the Board should be the first to see violations of rights in the union and initiate the corresponding inquiry by the EEC,” Andrei Kobyakov said.

EEC urged to resume work on list of exemptions, restrictions in Eurasian Economic Union

The Eurasian Economic Commission should promptly resume active work on the list of exemptions and restrictions that exist in the Eurasian Economic Union. Prime Minister of Belarus Andrei Kobyakov made the statement as he opened the session of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in the Gorki residence near Moscow on 6 February.

Andrei Kobyakov said that the Eurasian Economic Commission put vigorous efforts into detecting existing exemptions and restrictions in the mutual trade in commodities and services before the Eurasian Economic Union Treaty was signed. “Now we hear virtually nothing from the Commission regarding this work. Moreover, the list of exemptions and restrictions has started growing larger. We should decide how we should proceed from now on,” stated the Prime Minister of Belarus.

The Belarusian head of government underlined that even those, who oppose Eurasian integration, admit that the Eurasian Economic Union is a powerful structure on the global scale. “But we have commissioned our edifice with a number of imperfections. Some of them are even specified by the acceptance report — the Eurasian Economic Union Treaty — as transition periods that extend to 2025,” he said.​