EAEU countries. Eurasian Economic Union: what is it, countries. Single market for goods and services

Eurasian Economic Union (hereinafter - EAEU)- an international organization for regional economic integration with international legal personality and established by the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union. The EAEU ensures freedom of movement of goods, services, capital and labor, as well as the implementation of a coordinated, consistent and unified policy in sectors of the economy.

The goals of creating the EAEU are:

• comprehensive modernization, cooperation and increasing the competitiveness of national economies;
• creating conditions for the stable development of the economies of the member states in the interests of improving the living standards of their population.

Within the EAEU:

In relation to third EAEU countries, uniform non-tariff regulation measures are applied, such as:

• prohibition of import and (or) export of goods;
• quantitative restrictions on the import and (or) export of goods;
• exclusive right to export and (or) import goods;
• automatic licensing (supervision) of export and (or) import of goods;
• permitting procedure for the import and (or) export of goods.

Member states of the Eurasian Economic Union

History of the formation of the Eurasian Economic Union

The official start date for the formation of the Customs Union can be considered 1995, when an Agreement on the creation of the Union was concluded between the Russian Federation, the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of Belarus. The purpose of this Agreement was to establish economic interaction between the parties, ensure free exchange of goods and fair competition.

On February 26, 1999, the Agreement on the Customs Union and the Common Economic Space was signed. The parties to the Treaty were Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and since 2006 - Uzbekistan. Until the early 2000s, the participating countries were actively engaged in the process of establishing cooperation in various fields of activity (including sociocultural, scientific).

In 2000, a decision was made to establish the Eurasian Economic Community (EurAsEC). The members of the community were the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Russian Federation and the Republic of Tajikistan.

In 2003, the Agreement on the formation of the Common Economic Space (SES) was signed. Work began on preparing the legal framework for the SES, which later became the basis for the functioning of the Union. The most important events in the process of forming the Customs Union were two informal summits of the heads of state of the EurAsEC.

At an informal summit on August 16, 2006, the heads of state of the EurAsEC decided to form a Customs Union within the EurAsEC, according to which Kazakhstan, Belarus and Russia were instructed to prepare a legal framework. A year later, on October 6, 2007, at the EurAsEC summit, a package of documents was approved and signed, marking the beginning of the creation of the legal framework of the Customs Union (agreements on the creation of the Single Customs Territory and the formation of the Customs Union, on the Commission of the Customs Union, protocols on amendments to the Treaty on the Establishment EurAsEC, on the procedure for the entry into force of international treaties aimed at forming the legal framework of the customs union, withdrawal from them and accession to them). In addition, an Action Plan for the formation of a customs union within the EurAsEC was approved.

Officially, on January 1, 2010, the Customs Union of the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation began to function. The united states began to apply a single customs tariff and uniform non-tariff regulation measures in foreign trade with third countries, and also streamlined tariff benefits and preferences for goods from third countries, and the Customs Code of the Customs Union came into force. Gradually, customs clearance and customs control began to be abolished at the internal borders of the participating countries of the Customs Union, and points for accepting notifications were eliminated.

In 2012, international treaties came into force, forming the legal basis for the Common Economic Space of the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation, creating the basis for the free movement of not only goods, but also services, capital and labor.

With the signing of the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union on May 29, 2014, the participating countries of the Customs Union and the Common Economic Space marked the beginning of a new, closer interaction. On October 10, 2014, the Republic of Armenia joined the Treaty on the EAEU. On December 23, 2014, the Treaty on the Accession of the Kyrgyz Republic to the EAEU was signed.

Structure of the unified customs legislation of the Eurasian Economic Union

In connection with the formation of the regulatory legal framework of the Eurasian Economic Union, the customs legislation of the participating states is changing. First of all, in addition to the current national legislation, two more levels of regulation have appeared: international agreements of the member states of the Customs Union and Decisions of the Customs Union Commission (currently the Eurasian Economic Commission). At the moment, the customs legislation of the EAEU is a four-level system:

Customs Code of the Eurasian Economic Union

The transition to a higher level of integration required major changes in the legal and regulatory framework of the Union. Work on the creation of a new Customs Code took several years; the process required numerous approvals of amendments by the Union member states. On December 26, 2016, the Customs Code of the Eurasian Economic Union was adopted, which replaced the Customs Code of the Customs Union adopted in 2009. The new EAEU Labor Code came into force on January 1, 2018. The document combines many international treaties and agreements of the Customs Union (for example, the Agreement on determining the customs value of goods moved across the customs border of the Customs Union), which will lose force in whole or in part.

The EAEU Customs Code contains a number of new provisions relating not only to the structure of the Code itself (the new EAEU Customs Code contains 4 appendices, which were not in the CU Customs Code), but also to the rules of customs regulation in the Union. Thus, in the draft EAEU Customs Code, the conceptual apparatus was updated, the “single window” principle was introduced, the priority of electronic declaration was declared, some changes were made to customs procedures, the institution of an authorized economic operator was reformed, etc.

Governing bodies of the Eurasian Economic Union

The governing bodies of the EAEU are:

• Supreme Eurasian Economic Council (supreme governing body)
• Eurasian Intergovernmental Council
• Eurasian Economic Commission (working permanent body)
• Court of the Eurasian Economic Union

Directions of activity of the Eurasian Economic Commission.

The Customs Union is an agreement adopted by the participants of the Eurasian Economic Union, the purpose of which is abolition of customs duties in trade relations. Based on these agreements, common ways of carrying out economic activities and a platform for quality assessments and certification are created.

Thanks to this it is achieved abolition of customs controls at the borders within the Union, general provisions for regulating economic activity for the external borders of the CU are concluded. In view of this, a common customs space is being created, using a generally accepted approach to border control. Another distinctive feature is the equality of rights of citizens of the customs area during employment.

In 2020, the Customs Union consists of next members of the EAEU:

• Republic of Armenia (since 2015);
• Republic of Belarus (since 2010);
• Republic of Kazakhstan (since 2010);
• Kyrgyz Republic (since 2015);
• Russian Federation (since 2010).

The desire to become a party to this agreement was voiced by Syria and Tunisia. In addition, we know about the proposal to include Turkey in the CU agreement. However, to date, no specific procedures have been adopted for these states to join the Union.

It is clearly visible that the functioning of the Customs Union serves as a good help for strengthening economic relations between countries located on the territory of the former Soviet countries. We can also say that the approach established in the agreement by the participating countries speaks of restoring lost connections in modern conditions.

Customs duties are distributed through a single sharing mechanism.

Given this information, it can be stated that the Customs Union, as we know it today, serves serious tool for the economic unification of countries that are members of the EAEU.

To understand what the activities of the Customs Union are, it will not be amiss to gain an understanding of how it was formed to its current state.

The emergence of the Customs Union was initially presented as one of the steps in the integration of the CIS countries. This was evidenced in the agreement on the creation of an economic union, signed on September 24, 1993.

Step by step moving towards this goal, in 1995, two states (Russia and Belarus) entered into an agreement between themselves on the approval of the Customs Union. Later, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan also entered this group.

More than 10 years later, in 2007, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia signed a pact to unite their territories into a single customs region and approve the Customs Union.

In order to specify the previously concluded agreements, from 2009 to 2010, more than 40 additional agreements were concluded. Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan have decided that, starting in 2012, a Common Market thanks to the unification of countries into a single economic space.

On July 1, 2010, another important agreement was concluded, which put into motion the work of the Customs Code.

On July 1, 2011, the current customs controls at the borders between countries were canceled and general rules were established at the borders with states that are not in the agreement. Until 2013, uniform legislative norms for the parties to the agreement will be formed.

2014 – The Republic of Armenia joins the Customs Union. 2015 – The Republic of Kyrgyzstan joins the Customs Union.

On January 1, 2018, a new unified Customs Code of the EAEU. It was created to automate and simplify a number of customs processes.

Territory and management

The unification of the borders of the Russian Federation, the Republic of Belarus and the Republic of Kazakhstan became the basis for the emergence of the Single Customs Space. This is how the territory of the Customs Union was formed. In addition, it includes certain territories or objects under the jurisdiction of the parties to the agreement.

The limit of the territory is the border of the Customs Union with third-party states. Moreover, the existence of borders for individual territories located under the jurisdiction of the Union member states is normatively established.

The management and coordination of the Eurasian Economic Union is carried out by two organs:

1. Interstate Council- the highest body of a supranational nature, consists of heads of state and head of government of the Customs Union.
2. Customs Union Commission– an agency that deals with issues related to the formation of customs rules and regulates foreign trade policy.

Directions and conditions

When creating the Customs Union, countries declared the main goal socio-economic progress. In the future, this implies an increase in trade turnover and services produced by business entities.

The increase in sales was initially expected directly in the space of the vehicle itself due to following conditions:

1. The abolition of customs procedures within the Union, which was supposed to make products produced within a single space more attractive, due to.
2. Increasing trade turnover by eliminating customs controls at internal borders.
3. Adoption of uniform requirements and integration of safety standards.

Achieving goals and perspectives

Having collected available information about the emergence and activities of the Customs Union, we can come to the conclusion that the results of increasing the turnover of goods and services are published much less frequently than news about the signing of new agreements, i.e. its declarative part.

But, nevertheless, analyzing the stated goals when creating the Customs Union, as well as observing their implementation, one cannot remain silent that simplification of trade turnover has been achieved and competitive conditions have been improved for economic entities of the Customs Union states.

It follows from this that the Customs Union is on the way to achieving its goals, however, in addition to time, this requires the mutual interest of both the states themselves and the economic elements within the Union.

The customs union consists of countries that have the same economic background, but today these states are very different from each other. Of course, even in Soviet times, the republics differed in their specialization, but after gaining independence, many more changes occurred that affected the world market and the division of labor.

However, there are also common interests. For example, many participating countries remain dependent on the Russian sales market. This trend is economic and geopolitical in nature.

Throughout the whole time leading positions in the process of integration and stabilization of the EAEU and the Customs Union played Russian Federation. This was possible due to its stable economic growth until 2014, when prices for raw materials remained high, which helped finance the processes launched by the agreements.

Although such a policy did not predict rapid economic growth, it still assumed the strengthening of Russia's position on the world stage.

The history of relations between the parties to the agreements is similar to a series of compromises that were built on the basis of the role of Russia and the positions of partner countries. For example, there were repeated statements from Belarus about its priorities: a single economic space with equal prices for oil and gas, access to Russian government procurement.

To achieve these goals, the Republic increased tariffs on imported cars in the absence of its own production. Because of such measures it was necessary to install rules for certification of light industry goods, which hurt retail trade.

In addition, the standards adopted at the CU level were unified with the WTO model, despite the fact that Belarus is not a member of this organization, unlike Russia. Enterprises of the Republic have not received access to Russian import substitution programs.

All this served as obstacles for Belarus on the path to achieving its goals in full.

It should not be overlooked that the signed CU agreements contain various exceptions, clarifications, anti-dumping and countervailing measures, which have become an obstacle to the achievement of common benefits and equal conditions for all countries. At various times, virtually every participant in the agreement expressed disagreement with the terms contained in the agreements.

Although customs posts on the borders between the parties to the agreement were eliminated, border zones between countries have been preserved. Sanitary control at internal borders also continued. A lack of trust in interaction practice has been revealed. An example of this is the disagreements that flare up from time to time between Russia and Belarus.

Today it is impossible to say that the goals that were declared in the agreement on the creation of the Customs Union have been achieved. This is evident from the decrease in the turnover of goods within the customs area. There are also no economic development benefits when compared with the time before the agreements were signed.

But there are still signs that in the absence of an agreement the situation would deteriorate more rapidly. The manifestation of the crisis would be broader and deeper. A significant number of enterprises gain relative benefits by participating in trade relations within the Customs Union.

Methods for distributing customs duties among countries also indicate favorable trends for the Republic of Belarus and the Republic of Kazakhstan. Initially, a large share was planned for the budget of the Russian Federation.

The agreements signed by the parties benefited the production of automobiles. Duty-free sales of cars assembled by manufacturers in participating countries have become available. Thus, conditions have been created for the implementation of projects that previously could not succeed.

What is the Customs Union? Details are in the video.

In Astana (Kazakhstan) by the presidents of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. Came into force on January 1, 2015.

: Armenia (since January 2, 2015), Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan (since August 12, 2015) and Russia.

The population of the EAEU countries as of January 1, 2016 was 182.7 million people (2.5% of the world population). The gross domestic product in the EAEU countries in 2014 amounted to $2.2 trillion (3.2% in the structure of world GDP). Industrial production reached $1.3 trillion (3.7% of global industrial production). The volume of foreign trade in goods of the EAEU with third countries in 2014 amounted to $877.6 billion (3.7% of world exports, 2.3% of world imports).

The Eurasian Economic Union was created on the basis of the Customs Union of Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus and the Common Economic Space as an international organization of regional economic integration with international legal personality.

Within the framework of the Union, freedom of movement of goods, services, capital and labor is ensured, as well as the implementation of a coordinated, coordinated or unified policy in key sectors of the economy.

The idea of ​​creating the EAEU was laid down in the Declaration on Eurasian Economic Integration adopted by the presidents of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan on November 18, 2011. It sets out the goals of Eurasian economic integration for the future, including the declared task of creating the Eurasian Economic Union by January 1, 2015.

The creation of the EAEU means a transition to the next stage of integration after the Customs Union and the Common Economic Space.

The main goals of the Union are:

— creating conditions for the stable development of the economies of the member states in the interests of improving the living standards of their population;

— the desire to form a single market for goods, services, capital and labor resources within the Union;

— comprehensive modernization, cooperation and increasing the competitiveness of national economies in the global economy.

The highest body of the EAEU is the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council (SEEC), which includes the heads of member states. The SEEC considers fundamental issues of the Union's activities, determines the strategy, directions and prospects for the development of integration and makes decisions aimed at realizing the goals of the Union.

Meetings of the Supreme Council are held at least once a year. To resolve urgent issues of the Union's activities, extraordinary meetings of the Supreme Council may be convened at the initiative of any of the member states or the chairman of the Supreme Council.

The implementation and control over the execution of the EAEU Treaty, international treaties within the Union and decisions of the Supreme Council is ensured by the Intergovernmental Council (IGC), consisting of the heads of government of the member states. Meetings of the Intergovernmental Council are held as necessary, but at least twice a year.

The Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) is a permanent supranational regulatory body of the Union with headquarters in Moscow. The main tasks of the Commission are to ensure conditions for the functioning and development of the Union, as well as to develop proposals in the field of economic integration within the Union.

The Union Court is a judicial body of the Union that ensures the application by member states and bodies of the Union of the Treaty on the EAEU and other international treaties within the Union.

The chairmanship of the SEEC, EMU and the EEC Council (the level of vice-premiers) is carried out on a rotational basis in the order of the Russian alphabet by one member state for one calendar year without the right of extension.

In 2016, Kazakhstan presides over these bodies.

The Republic of Kazakhstan is an initiator and active participant in many integration processes. The idea of ​​Eurasian integration was first voiced by the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan N.A. Nazarbayev in 1994. At first, this initiative, which at that time seemed revolutionary, was received ambiguously. However, over time it received greater support and development.

As a result, at the first stage the Customs Union was created, then the Common Economic Space, and on January 1, 2015, the Eurasian Economic Union was launched, the founders of which were Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia. In the same year, the Republic of Armenia and the Kyrgyz Republic became full members of the EAEU.

Along with the European Union, the formation of which began in the middle of the 20th century, the EAEU became the second example of a full-fledged economic union in the world.

The EAEU is not a political association. During the work on the Treaty on the Union, the member states of the EAEU consciously refused to politicize it and include issues affecting national sovereignty within the competence of the Union. Within the framework of the EAEU, issues of exclusively economic cooperation are considered, and the principle of sovereign equality, equal rights and consideration of the national interests of its member states is ensured.

The EAEU is an international organization for regional economic integration, which is based on the agreements reached by states within the framework of the Customs Union and the Common Economic Space.

Within the framework of the EAEU, freedom of movement of goods, services, capital and labor is ensured, the implementation of a coordinated, agreed or unified policy in the sectors of the economy defined by the Treaty on the EAEU of May 29, 2014 and international treaties within the Union.

The main goals of the EAEU are to create conditions for the stable development of the economies of the Union member states in the interests of improving the living standards of their population; the desire to form a single market for goods, services, capital and labor within the Union, as well as comprehensive modernization, cooperation and increasing the competitiveness of national economies in a global economy.

The economic potential of Eurasian integration is very high. The combined economies of the states are more than US$2.2 trillion, with a population of more than 182 million people.

In conditions of continental “isolation”, the most important systemic aspect for the growth of the economy of Kazakhstan and its diversification is the reduction of transport costs. Within the framework of the EAEU, agreements on access to infrastructure and domestic tariffs of partner countries for the transportation of goods allowed Kazakh businesses to reduce transport costs. Accordingly, the competitiveness of Kazakhstani products in foreign markets has increased.

Uniform principles of technical regulation, a common system of veterinary, sanitary and phytosanitary safety allow the movement of products across the territory of the Member States according to uniform requirements and on equal terms.

Citizens and businesses of the EAEU member states have already begun to feel the benefits of the free movement of labor. Ordinary citizens of the Union countries can work in any of the member states without obtaining work permits, and use educational documents without the procedure for their recognition.

In 2016, a package of documents was adopted necessary for the formation of a single market for medicines and medical devices, which will increase the volume of production of Kazakhstani pharmaceutical products, create additional jobs, and for consumers - reduce prices and improve the quality of medicines produced in the territory of the Union member states.

By 2019, a common electricity market will be formed, which will provide an effective pricing system, increase the volume of electricity production and the export component of the countries' energy systems. Within the framework of the common electricity market, the likelihood of electricity shortages will decrease.

Within the EAEU, agreements were reached on the formation of a common market for oil and petroleum products by 2025. It provides for the non-application of export customs duties and restrictions in mutual trade. In addition, by 2025, access to gas transportation infrastructure will be provided. Kazakhstan is interested in resolving these issues.

Agreements on access to the infrastructure of partner countries will reduce transport costs for our exporters. Accordingly, the competitiveness of Kazakhstani products, which are exported, including to European countries, will increase. There are interconnected supply systems for oil and petroleum products between the EAEU member states. The application of common terms of trade without barriers will ensure stability and balance in the functioning of these systems.

In the context of a slowdown in global economic growth, Kazakhstan’s participation in Eurasian economic integration creates the necessary foundation for diversifying the economy and increasing labor productivity.

In addition, efforts in the activities of the EAEU are focused on intensifying international contacts. The expansion of trade and economic ties with major partners and new growing markets should become an impetus for increasing the role of the EAEU throughout the continent. Evidence of the attractiveness of the EAEU is the interest of more than 30 countries in signing agreements with the EAEU on the creation of a free trade zone.

Currently, more than 25 memoranda of cooperation and interaction of the EAEU have been signed with various countries, including Mongolia, Chile, Peru, Singapore and Cambodia.

On October 5, 2016, the Free Trade Agreement with Vietnam came into force, which is the first preferential agreement within the EAEU. There is a mandate to hold negotiations with China, Israel and Serbia. At a meeting of the Supreme Council on December 26, 2016 in St. Petersburg, decisions were approved to begin negotiations on concluding free trade agreements with Iran, India, Egypt and Singapore. Partners from South America and South Korea are also showing interest in cooperation with the Union.

A search for common ground with the European Union and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization is underway. A course has been taken to integrate the EAEU and the Chinese Silk Road Economic Belt initiative.

In general, Kazakhstan always advocates the progressive development of integration across the wide expanse of Eurasia, which, in our opinion, gives a powerful multiplier impetus to global economic development.

Cooperation within the EAEU is carried out in such areas as:

Customs tariff and non-tariff regulation;

Customs regulation;

Technical regulation;

Sanitary, veterinary-sanitary and quarantine phytosanitary measures;

Transfer and distribution of import customs duties;

Establishment of trade regimes in relation to third parties;

Statistics of foreign and mutual trade;

Macroeconomic policy;

Competition policy;

Industrial and agricultural subsidies;

Energy Policy;

Natural monopolies;

State and (or) municipal procurement;

Mutual trade in services and investments;

Transport and transportation;

Monetary Policy;

Intellectual property;

Work migration;

Financial markets (banking, insurance, foreign exchange market, securities market).

The bodies of the EAEU are the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council (heads of member states), the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council (heads of government of member states), the Eurasian Economic Commission (Commission), as well as the EAEU Court, which is located in Minsk.

The commission consists of 2 levels – the Council and the Collegium. The Council is represented by five deputy prime ministers of the member states. The Commission's board consists of 10 people, 2 representatives from each state. The location of the Commission is Moscow. A representative of the Republic of Armenia, Tigran Surenovich Sargsyan, was elected Chairman of the Board for a four-year period (from February 1, 2016).

All decisions taken by the Supreme, Intergovernmental Councils and the Commission Council are made by consensus, which allows the interests of each member state to be taken into account.

The Board of the Commission has a mechanism for making decisions by consensus and qualified majority. Decisions are made on the most sensitive issues by consensus, and on the rest - by a qualified majority of two-thirds of the votes.

Moreover, any decisions made by the Collegium can be revised by higher bodies of the Union - the Council of the Commission, the Intergovernmental Council, the Supreme Council. And as a last resort, any issue can be challenged in the EAEU Court.

At the proposal of the Republic of Kazakhstan, in the structural divisions of both the Commission and the Court, the positions of directors and deputy directors are occupied by representatives of the Member States, taking into account the principle of their equal representation.

Currently, the Commission consists of 25 departments, in which each party is represented by 5 directors and 13 deputy directors of the Commission's departments. The remaining employees are appointed in proportion to the state's share in the financing of these bodies. The staff size of the Commission is 1071 people.

In general, the activities of the EAEU are aimed at solving problems of improving the well-being and quality of life of citizens of the member states. The EAEU is a powerful incentive for the development and comprehensive modernization of the economies of its member states and bringing them to leading positions in the global world.

22.01.2020

The Customs Union (CU) is an interstate agreement within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). The CU involves the abolition of customs duties and similar payments in mutual trade between member countries of the union. In addition, the Customs Union unifies quality assessment and certification methods and creates a unified database on certain aspects of economic activity.

The conclusion of the Union is the basis for the creation of a single customs space on the territory of its members and the transfer of customs barriers to the external borders of the Union. Based on this, all countries in the customs area apply a single, coordinated approach to customs procedures and goods imported and exported across the borders of the Customs Union.

Also, throughout the territory of the Customs Union, equal rights for citizens of participating countries in employment are assumed.

The participants of the Customs Union currently (2016) are members of the EAEU:

• Republic of Armenia;
• Republic of Belarus;
• The Republic of Kazakhstan;
• Republic of Kyrgyzstan;
• Russian Federation.

Syria and Tunisia announced their intention to join the CU, and a proposal was voiced to admit Turkey into the Union. However, nothing is known about specific actions to implement these intentions.

The management and coordination bodies in the EAEU are:

• The Supreme Eurasian Economic Council is a supranational body consisting of the heads of state of the EAEU members;
• The Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) is a permanent regulatory body of the EAEU. The competence of the EEC includes, among other things, issues of international trade and customs regulation.

It would be fair to say that the Customs Union is one of the stages of a plan to strengthen economic ties between some states in the territory of the former USSR. In a certain sense, this can be seen as the restoration of once existing economic and technological chains, taking into account new political and economic realities.

An important aspect of the Union’s activities has become the system of centralized distribution of customs duties paid when crossing the borders of the Common Economic Space.

• Russia accounts for 85.33% of the total;
• Kazakhstan receives - 7.11%;
• Belarus - 4.55%;
• Kyrgyzstan - 1.9%;
• Armenia - 1.11%.

In addition, the Customs Union has a mechanism for coordinated collection and distribution of indirect taxes.

Thus, in its current state, the Customs Union is a way of economic integration of the states that are members of the EAEU.

Official information about the Customs Union can be obtained on the website of the Eurasian Economic Union - eurasiancommission.org.

History of the creation of the vehicle

To better understand the prerequisites and goals of creating the Customs Union, it will be useful to consider the evolution of integration processes in the post-Soviet space:

• 1995 - Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia sign the first agreement on the creation of the Customs Union. Subsequently, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan joined the agreement;
• 2007 - Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia enter into an Agreement on a single customs territory and the construction of the Customs Union;
• 2009 - previously concluded agreements are filled with specific content, about 40 international treaties are signed. A decision was made to form a single customs space on the territory of Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan from January 1, 2010;
• 2010 - the Unified Customs Tariff comes into force, a common Customs Code for three states is adopted;
• 2011 - customs control is removed from the borders between the CU states and transferred to their external borders with third countries;
• 2011 - 2013 - the development and adoption of legislative norms common to the countries of the Union continues, the first unified technical regulation on product safety appears;
• 2015 - Armenia and Kyrgyzstan join the Customs Union.
• 2016 - Entry into force of the Agreement on a free trade zone between the EAEU and Vietnam. Statement by the presidents of the EAEU countries “On the digital agenda of the Eurasian Economic Union.”
• 2017 - “White Book” of barriers, exemptions and restrictions. Signing and ratification of the Treaty on the Customs Code of the EAEU.
• 2018 - Entry into force of the Treaty on the Customs Code of the EAEU. Granting the Republic of Moldova the status of an observer country in the EAEU. Signing of the Agreement on trade and economic cooperation between the EAEU and the PRC. Signing of an Interim Agreement leading to the creation of a free trade zone between the EAEU and Iran.

It must be said that integration processes, with different speeds and results, were constantly going on throughout the period described. Legislation and customs tariffs in trade with third countries were gradually brought to general norms.

Goals of the Customs Union and their implementation

The immediate goal of the Customs Union was stated to be an increase in markets for goods and services produced by its members. The calculation was made, first of all, on the growth of sales within the Common Customs Space of the Union. This was supposed to be achieved by:

• The abolition of internal customs duties, which should contribute to the price attractiveness of products produced in the Union;
• Acceleration of the turnover of goods due to the abolition of customs control and clearance when moving them within the Customs Union;
• Adoption of general sanitary-epidemiological and veterinary requirements, uniform standards for the safety of goods and services, mutual recognition of test results.

To unify approaches to quality and safety, an interstate agreement was concluded on mandatory certification of products specified in the “Unified List of Products Subject to Mandatory Assessment (Confirmation) of Compliance within the Customs Union with the issuance of uniform documents.” For 2016, over three dozen regulations on requirements for the safety and quality of goods, works and services have been agreed upon. Certificates issued by any state are valid in all others.

The next goal of the Customs Union should be the joint protection of the internal market of the Customs Union, the creation of favorable conditions for the production and sale, first of all, of domestic products of the Union member countries. At this point in the program, mutual understanding between states turned out to be somewhat less than in matters of mutual trade. Each country had its own priorities in the development of production, while protecting the interests of neighbors sometimes had a negative impact on importing enterprises and the population.

Contradictions in the CU

The Customs Union united states with a common past, including economic, but a different present, primarily economic. Each of the former Soviet republics had its own specialization during the Soviet period, and during the years of independence there were many other changes associated with attempts to find its place in the world market and in the regional division of labor. Belarus and Kyrgyzstan, states equally distant geographically and in structure, have few mutual interests. But there are similar interests. Since Soviet times, the economic structure of both countries has been built in such a way that it requires a Russian sales market. The situation in Kazakhstan and Armenia is somewhat different, but for them, ties with Russia are extremely important, largely for geopolitical reasons.

At the same time, the Russian economy until the end of 2014 grew successfully due to high gas and other raw materials. Which gave the Russian Federation financial opportunities to finance integration processes. This course of action may not have promised immediate economic benefits, but it did suggest an increase in Russia's influence on the world stage. Thus, the Russian Federation has always remained the real driving force of the processes of the Eurasian unification in general and the Customs Union in particular.

The history of integration processes in recent decades looks like a series of compromises between Russia’s influence and the interests of its neighbors. For example, Belarus has repeatedly stated that it is not the Customs Union itself that is important to it, but a single economic space with equal prices for oil and gas and access for enterprises of the Republic to Russian government procurement. For this purpose, Belarus agreed to increase tariffs on the import of passenger cars in 2010-2011, without having its own production of such products. Such a “sacrifice” also became the reason for the announcement of mandatory certification of light industry goods, which hit small retail trade hard. In addition, the internal standards of the Customs Union had to be brought into line with the norms, although Russia is a member of this organization (and enjoys the corresponding opportunities in international trade), and Belarus is not.

So far, the Republic of Belarus has not received the desired benefits in full, because... Questions about equalities with domestic Russian energy prices have been postponed until 2025. Also, Belarusian enterprises did not receive opportunities to participate in the Russian import substitution program.

It should be noted that the agreements of the Customs Union have many exceptions and clarifications, anti-dumping, protective and compensatory measures that do not allow us to talk about common benefits and equal conditions for all participants in the organization. Almost each of the CU states at certain points expressed their dissatisfaction with the contractual terms.

Despite the elimination of customs posts within the Union, border control between states remains. Inspections by sanitary control services also continue at internal borders. The practice of their work demonstrates neither mutual trust nor the declared unity of approaches. An example of this is the “food wars” that periodically arise between Russia and Belarus. Their usual scenario begins with non-recognition of the quality of products certified by the Belarusian side and leads to a ban on supplies to Russian consumers “until the deficiencies are eliminated.”

Advantages of the Customs Union

It is impossible to talk about achieving the goals declared at the conclusion of the Customs Union at the moment (2016), internal trade turnover between the CU participants is falling. There are also no particular advantages for the economy compared to the period before the agreements were concluded.

At the same time, there is reason to believe that without the agreement on the Customs Union the situation would have looked even more depressing. Crisis phenomena in each individual economy could have a greater scale and depth. Presence in the Customs Union gives many enterprises a comparative advantage in the intra-Union market.

The shared distribution of customs duties between the CU states also looks favorable for Belarus and Kazakhstan (initially, the Russian Federation claimed to transfer 93% of the total to its own).

The agreements in force in the Customs Union provide the opportunity for duty-free sales of cars produced in the territory of the Union in the industrial assembly mode. Thanks to this, Belarus received foreign investment in the construction of enterprises for the production of passenger cars. Until this time, such projects were not successful due to the small volume of the Belarusian sales market itself.

Practice of application of customs agreements

Studying the published information about the creation and functioning of the Customs Union, it is easy to notice that the declarative part, i.e. Ratified interstate agreements and general documents are mentioned much more often than specific figures for increasing trade turnover.

But the Union should obviously not be treated as a PR campaign. There is a noticeable simplification of the movement of goods, a reduction in the number of administrative procedures, and some improvement in competitive conditions for enterprises of the CU member countries. It is likely that filling the agreed upon uniform rules with economic content requires time and mutual interest not only between state institutions, but also between business entities within the Customs Union.

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