Belarus President "Eurasian Economic Union Must Integrate Markets"... Proposes Summit Meeting

Former Soviet States Advocate 'Single Market'
Intended to Directly Counter US and Western Sanctions

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] Belarus, a representative pro-Russian country, has proposed the creation of a single market within the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), an economic union formed by former Soviet states, in direct response to Western sanctions against Russia.

On the 12th (local time), according to major foreign media and local Kazakhstani press, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko told Russian President Vladimir Putin the day before, "We must unite within the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), and everyone must participate." He added, "I propose that EAEU and CSTO member countries gather in Moscow to hold a summit." He emphasized, "Through single market integration, within a month we will forget that we are under economic sanctions from the West."

The EAEU is an economic union among former Soviet states, consisting of Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Armenia, and Kyrgyzstan, which were part of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). It officially launched on January 1, 2015, evolving from a customs union with the goal of creating a single market similar to the EU.

The CSTO is a security consultation organization led by Russia within the CIS. It dispatched peacekeeping forces to suppress protests during the unrest in Kazakhstan in January.

Meanwhile, the background for these claims is interpreted as the severe deterioration of the Russian economy due to sanctions imposed by the United States and the West. The Western bloc, including the US and the European Union (EU), has imposed stringent sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, including blocking the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) and freezing assets of key institutions and individuals. Accordingly, the Institute of International Finance (IIF) forecasts that Russia's economy will contract by 15% this year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.