Opinions & Interviews

MINSK, 29 April (BelTA) - There are a number of outstanding issues regarding the establishment of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEC). But we can further explore them and find a compromise, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at the meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council which is running in Minsk, BelTA learned.

Vladimir Putin stated that a lot of work has been done to create "the most advanced integration project on the post-Soviet space.” According to him, the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan is already functional and yields real benefits. "We see the results in the economic performance of our countries. This is absolutely obvious,” he said.

“But we can take one more step (we have agreed on that), one step further to deepen our cooperation, to advance our cooperation to a higher level,” said the Russian President. He noted that much work has been done at the expert government level to prepare the draft treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union. This is a large 600-page document. “This will allow us to improve the competitiveness of the economies and make them more efficient, to attract domestic and foreign investment. The huge market of 170 million people which we have created can acquire a completely new quality, become more attractive, more effective and meaningful,” said Vladimir Putin.

However, the Russian President acknowledged that some issues “have not yet been worked out at the expert level”, so the final decision will be made by the heads of states who gathered in Minsk for the session of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council, Vladimir Putin said.