The Eurasian Economic Community

The Eurasian Economic Community (EurAsEC or EAEC) was put into motion on 10 October 2000 when Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan signed the treaty. EurAsEC was formally created when the treaty was finally ratified by all five member states in May 2001. EurAsEC grew out of the CIS Customs Union. All the members of EurAsEC are also members of the older Commonwealth of Independent States and the relationship between the two organisations is ambiguous. The members have also all agreed that EurAsEC should be merged with the Central Asian Cooperation Organization (CACO).

With the revival of EurAsEC in 2005 there is a possibility for the Common Economic Space agenda to be implemented in its framework with or without the participation of Ukraine. This was confirmed in August 2006 - initialy a customs union will consist of Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan with the other EurAsEC members joining later. In May 2002, Moldova and Ukraine were granted observer status within EurAsEC; however, Ukraine subsequently declared its desire not to become a full member state. Armenia received observer status in April 2003. Having common borders with the rest of the community is a prerequisite for full membership. Uzbekistan applied for membership in October 2005 when the process of merging of Central Asian Cooperation Organization and the Eurasian Economic Community began. It joined on 25 January 2006. It is not clear what will happen to the status of current CACO observers, that are not observers to EurAsEC (Georgia and Azerbaijan).

A 2005 EurAsEC meeting in Russia. The aims of EurAsEC include: Full-scale customs union and common market. Harmonisation of customs tariffs. Development of common guidelines on border security. Establishment of the general rules of trade in goods and in services and of their access to the domestic markets. The introduction of the standardised currency exchange regulation and of currency control. Development and the implementation of the joint programmes of social and economic development. Creation of equal conditions for production and entrepreneurial activity. The formation of the common market for transport services and united transport system.

The formation of general energy market. Equal rights for citizens of participating states to obtain medical aid. Equal rights for citizens of participating states to enter into higher education. Rapprochement and the harmonisation of national legislation. Source -