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Russian-Belarusian ties within Union State 'unique', Kremlin Spokesman says

During Wednesday’s plenary meeting of the Eurasian Economic Forum, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev pointed out the phenomenon of the Union State within the EAEU and invited his peers to discuss what the integration was doing

MOSCOW, May 25. /TASS/. The Union State of Russia and Belarus is the benchmark for integration associations, and other countries should take notice, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, commenting on a remark made by President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, who said that Moscow and Minsk "even share nuclear weapons now."

The spokesman noted that Tokayev called the Union State a one-of-a-kind exemplar, which requires special attention and special discussion among EAEU member states.

"This is indeed so, because there is effectively a more advanced integration within another integration. The Union State of Russia and Belarus is ages ahead of the EAEU. Of course, this is something unique in the world, and it must be taken into account," Peskov said.

During Wednesday’s plenary meeting of the Eurasian Economic Forum, Tokayev pointed out the phenomenon of the Union State within the EAEU and invited his peers to discuss what the integration was doing.

Russia and Belarus cooperate within the CIS (since 1991), the CSTO (since 2002), the Customs Union (since 2010) and the Common Economic Space (since 2012) as well as the Eurasian Economic Space (since 2012). Since 2015, the two states have been members of the Eurasian Economic Union, which also includes Kazakhstan, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan. The Treaty establishing the Union State was signed on December 8, 1999, by Presidents Boris Yeltsin and Alexander Lukashenko. The Treaty entered into effect on January 26, 2000, and lasts indefinitely. According to the document, the process of integration within the Union State implies the establishment of a single economic space, common currency, unification of energy systems, synchronization of trade and customs policies, establishment of a single legal system, among other things.

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Foreign policy Belarus Dmitry Peskov

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