MOSCOW, September 26. /ITAR-TASS/. Russia’s State Duma lower parliament house on Friday will consider the issue of the ratification of the Eurasian Economic Union Treaty. It is expected that this treaty will be supported by all lawmakers.
The ratification package was referred to the State Duma by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
A keynote report at the Friday Duma meeting will be delivered by Putin’s representative, Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade Alexei Likhachev. Viktro Khristenko, the chief of the Eurasian Economic Commission, will be present at the meeting.
Duma speaker Sergei Naryshkin said it was a landmark document and after it was ratified, the lawmakers would have to work hard to harmonize laws. “The future of integration in the Eurasian space and our relations with strategic partners will depend on this work,” he said.
The Eurasian Economic Union Treaty was signed by the presidents of Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus on May 29, 2014. The treaty establishes the Eurasian Economic Union, which ensures free movement of goods, services, capital and labour force and binds its member states to conduct coordinated or common policy in economic sectors.
Apart from that, it outlines the structure, competences and working procedures of the Union’s bodies - the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council to be made up of the heads of states of the member countries, the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council, a panel of heads of government, the Eurasian Economic Commissions, and the Eurasian Economic Union Court.
A separate section is dedicated to the Union’s budget, which will be formed in Russian roubles from contributions from the member states. The sizes of contribution will be established by the Supreme Council.
The treaty has provisions on customs and technical regulation, on foreign trade policy and measures to protect the domestic market. It is also planned to adopt a common customs tariff.
Separate sections are dedicated to coordinated macroeconomic and currency policy, regulation of financial markets, cooperation in the energy and transport sectors, the formation of a common market of gas, oil and oil products, medicines and medical products.
The treaty also covers such spheres as intellectual property and state procurements, industry, agriculture, labour migration. It also regulates informational cooperation within the Union.
The working language of the Union is Russia. The headquarters of the Eurasian Commission will be located in Moscow, the Union’s Court - in Minsk, and its financial regulator - in Almaty.
The Union will be open for any other state, which shares its goals and principles and on conditions agreed with member states.
The implementation of the Treaty will require extra budgetary spending. It is planned to allocate funds for these purposes in the Russian federal budget for 2015 and for a later period of 2016 and 2017.
The Eurasian Economic Union Treaty is to come into force from January 1, 2015.