Opinions & Interviews

ALMATY, 2 February (BelTA) – Belarus supports further removal of barriers in the development of the common market of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), Belarus’ Prime Minister Andrei Kobyakov said at the meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council on 2 February, BelTA has learned.

The premier noted that Belarus shares the opinion of Russia that is presiding in the EAEU this year on the need to pay close attention to the removal of the remaining barriers, withdrawals and restrictions that prevent the development of the EAEU common market. “This is indeed one of the most acute problems for the union. Belarus has repeatedly voiced its position on the matter. The good news is that we finally put our efforts in practice by adopting the corresponding roadmap for 2018-2019 last year,” Andrei Kobyakov said.

In his opinion, Russia has all the resources and opportunities to become a driving engine behind the growth of the economies of all the EAEU states. A lot was done for it last year. Today the EEC presented reports on the macroeconomic situation in the EAEU member states and the state of mutual trade in 2017.

Andrei Kobyakov drew attention to the need for internal "development" of the EAEU, ensuring the comprehensive and unconditional fulfillment of the EAEU norms and commitments by all the member states. “If we promised our peoples to create the common markets for oil and oil products and the common gas market by 2025, we must set them up as it is planned and thus adjust the fuel and raw materials base to the EAEU universal functioning. This should be done step by step,” he said.

The prime minister is convinced that it is not necessary to wait until 2025 to move from coordinated, common approaches to the unified agricultural, industrial, transport and other policies in various sectors of the economy. “Only by ensuring these fundamental principles, we can talk about further prospects for the Eurasian economic integration,” he added.