In the modern world, many countries are united in alliances - political, economic, religious and others. One of the largest such unions was Soviet. Now we see the emergence of the European, Eurasian, as well as the Customs Unions.
The customs union was positioned as a form of trade and economic integration of a number of countries, which provides not only a common customs territory for mutually beneficial trade with no duties, etc., but also a number of points regulating trade with third countries. This agreement was signed on October 6, 2007 in Dushanbe; at the time of its conclusion, the Union included the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan and Belarus.
The first article of the agreement on the movement of goods within this territory says the following:
- Customs duty is not charged. And not only for goods of own production, but also for cargo from third countries.
- There are no economic restrictions, except for compensation, antidumping.
- The countries of the Customs Union apply a single customs tariff.
Existing countries and candidates
There are both permanent member countries of the Customs Union, which were its founders or joined later, and those that only expressed a desire to join.
The participants:
- Armenia;
- Kazakhstan;
- Kyrgyzstan;
- Russia;
- Belarus
Candidates for membership:
- Tunisia;
- Syria;
- Tajikistan.
TC managers
There was a special commission of the Customs Union, which was approved at the time of signing the agreement on the Customs Union. Its rules were the basis of the legal activities of the organization. The structure worked and remained within this legal framework until July 1, 2012, that is, until the creation of the EEC. The supreme body of the union at that time was a group of representatives of the heads of state (Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (Russian Federation), Nursultan Abishevich Nazarbayev (Republic of Kazakhstan) and Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko (Republic of Belarus)).
The following prime ministers were represented at the level of heads of government:
- Russia - Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev;
- Kazakhstan - Karim Kazhimkanovich Masimov;
- Belarus - Sergey Sergeevich Sidorsky.
Purpose of the Customs Union
The countries of the Customs Union under the main goal of creating a single regulatory body meant the formation of a common territory, which will include several states, and on their territory all duties on products are canceled.
The second goal was to protect our own interests and markets, first of all, from harmful, substandard, as well as competitive products, which makes it possible to smooth out all the shortcomings in the trade and economic sphere. This is very important, since the protection of the interests of their own states, taking into account the views of the union members, is a priority for any country.
Benefits and Prospects
First of all, the benefit is obvious for those enterprises that can easily procure in neighboring countries. Most likely, these will be only large corporations and companies. As for the prospects for the future, contrary to some forecasts of economists that the Customs Union will entail a decrease in the level of wages in the participating countries, at the official level, the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan announced the hanging of salaries in the state in 2015.
That is why the world experience of such large economic entities cannot be attributed to this case. The countries that are members of the Customs Union are expecting, if not a quick, but stable growth in economic ties.
Contract
The final version of the Agreement on the Customs Code of the Customs Union was adopted only at the tenth meeting, 10.26.2009. This pact spoke about the creation of special groups that will follow up on the implementation of the amended draft agreement.
The countries of the Customs Union had to amend their legislation before 01.07.2010 in order to eliminate the contradictions between this Code and the Constitution. Thus, another contact group was created to resolve the problems associated with differences between national legislative systems.
Also, all the nuances associated with the territories of the vehicle were finalized.
The territory of the Customs Union
The countries of the Customs Union have a common customs territory, which is determined by the borders of the states that have concluded the agreement and are members of the organization. The Customs Code, among other things, determines the expiration date of the commission, which came on July 1, 2012. Thus, a more serious organization was created, which has much more authority and, accordingly, more people in its staff, in order to fully control all processes. On January 1, 2012, the Eurasian Economic Commission (EAEU) officially began its work.
EAEU
The structure of the Eurasian Economic Union includes the member countries of the Customs Union: the founders - Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan - and the newly joined states, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia.
The establishment of the EAEU implies a wider range of relationships in the freedom of movement of labor, capital, services and goods. Also, a coordinated economic policy of all countries should be constantly pursued, a transition to a single customs tariff should be carried out .
The total budget of this union is formed exclusively in Russian rubles, thanks to share contributions made by all countries participating in the Customs Union. Their size is regulated by the highest council, which consists of the heads of these states.
Russian became the working language for the regulation of all documents, and the headquarters will be located in Moscow. The EAEU financial regulator is in Almaty, and the court is in the capital of Belarus, Minsk.
Union bodies
The highest regulatory body is the High Council, which includes the heads of state of the participating States.
Next is the intergovernmental council. It includes prime ministers whose main task is to consider the strategically important problems of economic integration.
A judicial body has also been created, which is responsible for the application of treaties within the Union.
The Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) is a regulatory body that provides all the conditions for the development and functioning of the Union, as well as the development of new proposals in the economic sphere regarding the format of the EAEU. It consists of the Ministers of the Commission (Deputy Prime Ministers of the Member States of the Union) and the Chair.
Main provisions of the EAEU Treaty
Of course, the EAEU, in comparison with the CU, has not only broader powers, but also a much more extensive and specific list of planned works. This document no longer has any general plans, and for each specific task a path to its implementation has been identified and a special working group has been created that will not only monitor progress, but also monitor its entire course.
In the contract received the countries of the single Customs Union, and now the EAEU, have secured an agreement on coordinated work and the creation of common energy markets. Work on energy policy is quite ambitious and will be implemented in several stages until 2025.
The creation of a common market for medical devices and medicines by January 1, 2016 is also regulated in the document.
Great importance is given to transport policy in the territory of the EAEU states, without which it would not be possible to create a single joint action plan. It is planned to develop a coordinated agro-industrial policy, which includes the mandatory formation of veterinary and phytosanitary measures.
An agreed macroeconomic policy provides an opportunity to translate into reality all the plans and agreements that have been conceived. In such conditions, general principles of interaction are developed and the effective development of countries is ensured.
A special place is occupied by the general labor market , which regulates not only the free movement of labor, but also the same working conditions. Citizens who are sent to work in the EAEU countries will no longer need to fill out migration cards (if their stay does not exceed 30 days). The same simplified system will work with medical care. The issue of the export of pensions and the offset of seniority, which has been accumulated in a member country of the Union, is also being addressed.
Expert Opinions
The list of countries of the Customs Union in the near future may be replenished with several more states, but, experts say, in order for full-fledged growth and influence on western similar unions to be similar to the EU (European Union), a lot of work and expansion of the organization are needed. In any case, the ruble will not be able to become an alternative to the euro or the dollar for a long time, and the influence of recent sanctions has clearly shown how Western policy can work to please its interests, and that neither Russia nor the whole Union can actually do anything about it. . As for specifically Kazakhstan and Belarus, the conflict in Ukraine has shown that they will not give up their benefit to please Russia. Tenge, by the way, also fell sharply due to the fall of the ruble. And on many issues, Russia remains the main competitor of Kazakhstan and Belarus. However, at the moment, the creation of the Union is an adequate and only right decision that can help to somehow strengthen relations between states in the event of further pressure from the West on Russia.
Now it is known which countries in the Customs Union are more interested in its creation. Despite the fact that even at the stage of its emergence, he was constantly harassed by all kinds of problems, the joint coordinated actions of all members of the Union allow them to be resolved as quickly as possible, which makes it possible to look with optimism into the future and hope for the speedy development of the economies of all the states participating in this agreement.