40 More Countries Seek Trade With Eurasian Union: Russian Parliamentarian

MOSCOW, November 24 (Sputnik) – Another 40 countries want to establish free trade zones with the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), the Chairman of lower house of Russian Parliament Sergey Naryshkin said Monday.

"Around 40 more countries of the world have also officially declared their willingness to create a free trade zone with our organization [the Eurasian Economic Union]. Meanwhile some our Commonwealth [Commonwealth of Independent States] partners, mostly under a pressure of other countries, refuse from equal participation in the Eurasian Economic Union for the association with the European Union under its full dominance," Naryshkin said at the President, Parliament, Integration conference in Kazakhstan.

Referring to the fact that Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine had signed Association Agreements with the European Union June 27, Naryshkin stressed that all countries have the sovereign right to determine their geopolitical future.

"However, the politicians have to take into consideration the position of all social groups and the regions of their country, but also respect the interests of the neighboring countries — its major economic partners, " the speaker noted.

Naryshkin called for the intensification of intergovernmental cooperation within the EEU. He particularly suggested that member states carry out an examination of new national legislation so they would match the EEU treaty. Major documents and projects regarding the integration processes should be discussed at joint sessions of the relevant parliamentary committees of member states, the speaker concluded.

Naryshkin proposed to hold "round tables" and other meetings of EEU members, experts and entrepreneurs on a regular basis.

Economic cooperation between post-Soviet countries has increased since late 1990s. In February 1995 Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Russia signed a treaty guaranteeing the creation of a Eurasian Customs Union (ECU). The EEU, a political and economic organization, is an offshoot of the ECU, founded by Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia in May 2014.