Eurasian integration should touch on Ukraine

By Vestnik Kavkaza

On April 2nd, Moscow and Minsk marked the Belarus and Russia Unity Day. This year in 1997 presidents of the two countries signed the agreement on establishing of the Common State. Relations inside the couple are not always cloudless, but multilateral cooperation (Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan) develops actively. The integration process in the Eurasian space has more than 20-year history.

“The Eurasian project is gaining momentum. The Customs Union and the Common Economic Space are ready to enter the next stage of integration - the Eurasian Economic Union,” Igor Morozov, a member of the Federation Council Committee on Foreign Affairs, says. Today we have new members - Armenia and Kyrgyzstan, which, according to the "road map", are bringing certain parameters into accordance with the requirements for joining the organization.”

Morozov thinks that the free trade zone already existing on post-Soviet territory will have an impact Ukraine. And if Kiev withdraws from the CIS, Ukrainian citizens will be the ones to suffer: “About 3 million people work with the Russian Federation, and changes in the visa-free regime that might occur in this case will deprive them of an opportunity to buy patents to work in the CIS countries and will cause a number of difficulties related to registration in places of work, when they come here to work, and of course to issuing invitations by employers. I think, and I am even sure, that the Ukrainian government cannot do this, given today's crisis circumstances. Georgia withdrew from the CIS, remaining in a number of projects in which it is a partner. Azerbaijan works in the free trade zone. We believe that the more powerful the Eurasian project becomes, the more attractive it will be, including such neighborly countries as Georgia and Azerbaijan, which are linked to Russia by historical and cultural ties. I think that everything will depend on the future and the attractiveness of the project.”

Apprising the prospects of development of economies of two new Russian regions, Crimea and Sevastopol, Morozov said: “First of all private capital should be attracted, but it demands clear conditions, as investors should realize that there will be no changes in agreements or rules which we will offer.”

Speaking about Chinese investments into Crimean economy, Morozov said: “China is our serious partner. It is well-known that they build ports, bridges and so on all over the world and use them. They do all by themselves. We don’t want it in Crimea. I think Russia should find opportunities for building facilities in Crimea, as it is a very important strategic region, and port infrastructure should belong to Russia.”