MOSCOW, February 15. /TASS/. Kiev and Chisinau are not bowing out of all CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) agreements at once as they provide a lot of benefits, while Ukraine still conducts free trade with member states of the Commonwealth, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Pankin said.

"We stopped the work of the single market of goods with Ukraine, though Ukraine conducts free trade with other countries within the CIS. This provides a lot of advantages. Of course, CIS partners understand their interest," he said at Parliament hearings in the State Duma (lower house) devoted to the implementation of the Concept for Russia’s CIS chairmanship in 2024.

"Our partners, even those that started quitting, moving away from the CIS, quit a whole number of agreements, meaning Ukraine and Moldova, they do not withdraw from all agreements at once as there are mechanisms allowing cooperation in healthcare, sanitation, on emergencies, navigation and more," Pankin said. The Commonwealth of Independent States is "a single interconnected space," he noted, adding that "all this is a very important part of the work of the Commonwealth, those mechanisms being demanded by us and partners."