Naryshkin: about 40 countries want free trade with the EAEC

About 40 countries would like to create a free trade zone with the EAEC, State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin said during the 3rd International Forum 'Eurasian Economic Perspective'.

"Some 40 countries are negotiating about a free trade area with the EAEC," TASS cited him as saying.

 

According to Naryshkin, the first state to be able to do this would be Vietnam.

 

"Large-scale mutually beneficial projects are beginning to be implemented with such economic giants as China and India. Working with them has a principal advantage, because we export high-tech products, along with raw materials, and create joint ventures on the basis of Eurasian technology. All this encourages the modernization and diversification of our economies," the speaker concluded.

 

The president of the Baku Interbank Currency Exchange, Farhad Amirbayov, told Vestnik Kavkaza that Azerbaijan has consistently adhered to the policy of development of bilateral relations without entering into any integration structures.

 

According to expert, Naryshkin's announcement about 40 countries wishing to establish a free trade zone with the EAEC is impressive and indicates the formation of a new format. "But at this time, there is no information about the position of Azerbaijan in this direction. Let me remind you that the country entered the Asian Investment Bank development. And I think that Azerbaijan's aspiration to deepen cooperation with its neighbors will continue to grow," he said.

 

Georgia has its own specifics. The Georgian prime minister’s special representative for relations with Russia, Zurab Abashidze, said that the issue of a free trade zone with the EAEC is not being considered. "We have bilateral agreements with the members of the Eurasian Union - Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. These documents establish a fairly comfortable trade regime for Georgia, and because they are still in force, we find them sufficient to deal with the EAEC," Abashidze said.

 

An expert of the Center for Strategic Studies of Turkey, BİLGE, political scientist Orhan Gafarli, noted that the free trade zone with the EAEC is interesting for Turkey, as it will allow it to expand economic relations with the countries participating union. However, he drew attention to the need to address several issues related to current liabilities of Turkey. "First, Turkey has a customs agreement with the EU. For cooperation with the EAEC we need to consider all the complex documents that Turkey signed with the EU. If the document with the agreements with countries, which have signed customs agreements with the EU, will be developed in the EAEC, free trade zone between the EU and Turkey is possible," he said."Economic relations with Russia and all post-Soviet countries are very important for Turkey. I should add that the problem of closed borders with Armenia only complicate matters. Armenia is included in the EAEC, but Turkey, signing documents, didn't want to get a commitment to open them without settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. However, I remind you that Armenia has a similar agreement with the EU, but it does not stipulate that Turkey should open borders," the expert said.

An expert of the Center for Strategic Studies of Turkey, BİLGE, political scientist Orhan Gafarli, noted that a free trade zone with the EAEC is interesting for Turkey, as it will allow it to expand economic relations with the countries participating in the union. However, he drew attention to the need to address several issues related to the current liabilities of Turkey. "First, Turkey has a customs agreement with the EU. For cooperation with the EAEC we need to consider all the complex documents that Turkey signed with the EU. If the document with the agreements with countries, which have signed customs agreements with the EU, will be developed in the EAEC, a free trade zone between the EU and Turkey is possible," he said.

 

"Economic relations with Russia and all post-Soviet countries are very important for Turkey. I should add that the problem of closed borders with Armenia only complicates matters. Armenia is included in the EAEC, but Turkey, signing documents, didn't want to get a commitment to open them without a settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. However, I remind you that Armenia has a similar agreement with the EU, but it does not stipulate that Turkey should open its borders," the expert said.