On 4 December, Moscow is hosting the First Eurasian Congress titled “Economic Pragmatism and Mutual Benefit as Key Pillars of Eurasian Economic Integration.”
Mikhail Mishustin: Friends, colleagues,
I am glad to welcome you to the First Eurasian Congress.
First of all, I would like to thank the Eurasian Development Bank for organising this event and for the opportunity to discuss, at the congress venue, the most important matters related to Eurasian integration, as well as EAEU prospects, and to invite the business community, government agencies, international organisations and experts to join this discussion.
In terms of market capacity, industrial and agricultural potential and the intertwining of its economies, the Eurasian Economic Union is one of the leading regional integration associations. Our main task is to achieve prosperity for all the EAEU countries and to do all we can to achieve dynamic economic advancement, to maintain stable amid crises, and jointly counter the new challenges.
The EAEU has celebrated its fifth anniversary in 2020. It is developing in keeping with the principles of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). During this short period, the EAEU has harmonised regulation of the key areas of cooperation, created a common market with unified business rules, increased industrial cooperation, and expanded its market outlets. It is also creating conditions for fair competition and removing barriers from the path of the four freedoms: the free movement of goods, services, capital and workforce. The development institutions – the Eurasian Fund for Stabilisation and Development and the Eurasian Development Bank – are operating proactively. In the longer term, the EDB should emerge as a regional centre to support integration processes and focus on implementing major and systemically important interstate projects.
The Eurasian Economic Union should reach a new level in its development. As is clear, it ought to continue strengthening the common market, where goods, services, capital and workforce are moving ever more freely, while at the same time creating a common digital space for the Five. This means that a fifth freedom, that of the movement of information, will be added to the other four.
It is the digital technologies and their introduction that are the main factor in shaping a common economic space and creating a single infrastructure. We must speedily transfer our countries’ economies to a new technological system and introduce the “digital” in all areas, including transportation and logistics. Over the past ten years, the digital platforms in this sphere have dramatically transformed world trade communications. The EAEU should also develop digital transport corridors that will make it possible to speed up freightage and increase the profits of transport and logistics companies.
There are great prospects for e-commerce as well. We are working to encourage e-trade within the EAEU. We also hope to sign a memorandum on creating a single postal operator, this in keeping with an initiative advanced by the Eurasian Development Bank, the sponsor of this congress. This will be an important step towards barrier-free e-commerce in the EAEU countries.
While promoting integration, there is no room for complacency. It is necessary to work to strengthen our influence internationally. The EAEU seeks dialogue with all foreign partners, including SCO partners. We are working proactively to become aligned with China’s Belt and Road Initiative, involving the creation of a system of digital corridors between China and the Five and introducing reciprocal e-certification in trade involving a number of commodities.
All of this is of importance for the building of a Greater Eurasian Partnership. It is this initiative that has been proposed by President of Russia Vladimir Putin.
Despite the difficult situation in the world economy, we will do what is needed to expand international cooperation. So, we have much important work ahead. Most importantly, we are striving to make the Eurasian Economic Union a really comfortable place for living and doing business.
I am confident that the ideas and proposals to be put forward at the Congress will help this work.
I wish all the participants success. Let this time be interesting and useful for you.
