Russian Strategy for Eurasian Integration: Key Elements, Determinants and Prospects for Development

Russia and non-regional States have recently shown fresh interest in the countries of the former Soviet Union. The rivalry between Russia and the United States for the post-Soviet territory, beginning after the collapse of the USSR, has broken new ground. Russia considers the post-Soviet space as an area of vital interests. Economic and political relations with its neighbors, the internal political situation in the former Soviet Republics have a direct impact on the development of Russia. These determinants can explain the renewed interest in Eurasian integration and an integration project — the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). However, the USA hardly welcomes such aspirations of Russia and the support for the integration project on the part of some post-Soviet countries. The American side has no interest in the newly emerging regional centers of influence in the post-Soviet space, regarding this as a threat to its interests. Countering the development of Eurasian integration and strengthening the EAEU influence is the focus of US policy in this regard. The EAEU member countries are consistently taking steps to develop integration despite obstacles from the West. The long-term objectives, defined in various documents by the countries, should put them on a new path of economic cooperation. Eurasian integration faces a number of difficulties along with the successes, achieved since the creation of the EAEU. The world economy problems, in addition to internal ones, exert a considerable influence. They intensified after the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, which negatively affected the development of the EAEU countries. The internal political problems faced by the EAEU countries adversely affect integration. The internal political crisis in Belarus, beginning in the later 2020, the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh, worsened internal political struggle in Armenia and Kyrgyzstan are the factors that influenced the work of the EAEU last year and early 2021. Nevertheless, economic difficulties and political events in specific countries, the pursuit of non-regional states to influence the elites of the former Soviet states have not altered the foreign policy priorities of the EAEU member states.

In article the author analyzed the history of emergence and development of the Eurasian economic union, there are considered the problems of its functioning in the conditions of accession to the World Trade Organization. It should be noted that the Eurasian integration approached to important point in its history. At the beginning of the first year of functioning of the Union optimists and supporters of unconditional integration without any questions were prevailed. However, recently, many questions and problems have been accumulated. The most part of questions is connected with the results of the first year of functioning of Eurasian economic union, and also, how economic model of this union is equitable to national and economic interests of each country separately. Therefore the author having investigated integration processes within EEU, feature of competitive fight in EEU, the reason of contradictions, and also, consequences to which devaluation of ruble and tenge have led, the dumping prices in Russia which negatively influence the competitiveness of economies of Kazakhstan and Belarus, has tried to answer a question whether there is a prospect at the Eurasian economic union. Complex research of a present state and problems of functioning of EEU was carried out with an application of comparative and system analyses, the content analysis, event-analysis, SWOT analysis, etc. methods of the political science analysis. Article is written on the basis of reliable factual materials. Also more often researchers do not write the political aspect of the integration processes taking place in the Eurasian space. Though it is obvious, that exactly the political motivation is the most important argument for many supporters of economic integration. Key words: Eurasian economic union, Eurasian integration, political issue, competitiveness, economic security.

As the title implies the article deals and analyse the cooperation processes of the conjugation of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and the Silk Road Economic Belt. The purpose of the article is to identify mechanism of the conjunction of the EAEU and Silk Road Economic Belt. To conduct the research and generate results, authors applied document analysis method. The object of the study is the mechanism of the conjugation of the EAEU and Silk Road Economic Belt. The subject of the research is Russian-Chinese bilateral relations, political and economic aspects and the normative legal base between the EAEU and China. Dependent variables of the research: normative legal framework, political and diplomatic relations, trade and investment cooperation, transport and logistics corridors, industry network, geopolitical constituent, Russian-Chinese relations. Independent variables of the research: the EAEU integration process, agreements between EAEU and Vietnam, Iran, India. It is analysed and stressed the vital role in the intensification bilateral relations and in the formation of normative legal base between the EAEU member states and the People’s Republic of China (PRC), as well as between the Russia and the PRC in creating favorable conditions to strengthen conjugation of the EAEU and the Silk Road Economic Belt. The article demonstrates a high level of Russian-Chinese relations in strategic areas of cooperation, a large complex of normative legal base, the importance of developing transport infrastructure and industrial network, the significance of increasing turnover including improving the investment environment. It is highlighted a crucial role of the Eurasian Economic Commission in creating a normative legal base of the conjugation mechanism of the EAEU and Silk Road Economic Belt in accordance with its competencies. One of the key issues of the article is an important role of the diplomatic and political mechanism of member states´ interaction in implementing the conjugation of the EAEU and the Silk Road Economic Belt. It is analysed the substantial role of nuclear energy as one of the major areas of economic cooperation between Russia and China, as well as one of the main factors for strengthening the conjunction of the EAEU and the Silk Road Economic Belt. It is underlined dynamism of cooperation of the conjugation. It is stressed the key role of the number of signed normative legal documents as well as a wide range of fields of interaction between the EAEU and the Silk Road Economic Belt. It is established that for the further cooperation is necessary to activate and intensify legal framework between the member states of the EAEU and China. It is shown that listed factors indicate positive perspectives for further cooperation of the conjunction.

Recent years have been characterized by a serious transformation of cooperation in the Greater Eurasia, as well as the strengthening of Russian-Chinese cooperation against the backdrop of a deep geopolitical crisis in relations between Russia and the countries of the collective West. It is customary to talk about a new level of interaction between Russia and China, as well as the development of partnership in the Eurasian space. Especially when it comes to the interaction of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and the Silk Road Economic Belt (SREB). In his article, the author attempts to study the implementation of cooperation between Russia and China in order to analyze the issues of integration processes in which the Russian Federation and China participate. The author comes to the conclusion that in order to better understand the features of the integration projects of Russia and China, it is necessary to give an analysis through the historical and political section of the development of both states and their participation in institutional processes in the Eurasian region. It has already been recognized that today integration processes are most actively implemented mainly at the regional level. Both Russia and China demonstrate great interest in participation and integration processes. However, if we talk about integration processes, then undoubtedly both Russia and China have their own vision of integration processes. And if the first state focuses on the activities of states, the second works with initiatives. At the same time, the political and ideological foundations for the creation and implementation of integration projects of Russia and China are based on the principles of sovereignty, independence, social justice and economic development. These principles determine the strategy and tactics of international cooperation of both countries, helping to strengthen their positions on the world stage and ensure stability and prosperity in the region.

This article focuses on the conceptualization of the support base of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) as an indicator of solidarity, unity of the member-state population around the integration concept and condition for the EEU successful development, and also stresses the importance of social-humanitarian aspects in the construction of the EEU. Based on the results of sociological studies (1), the article identifies the dynamics of the social support of integration processes by the member-state population in 2014-2018, and notes its decrease in the majority of member-states, differentiation in integration moods by age, and factors responsible for the decrease of the EEU’s support base. The author considers main directions, practices and instruments to enhance the social support for integration, and emphasizes that the concept of solidarity is interconnected with the ideas of social stability and justice. The author refers to the works of contemporary Russian and foreign scholars who developed the methodological grounds for promoting solidarity, and identifies ways to extend the EEU’s support base. The article shows that the resource of social solidarity, unity and structural-functional integration of the EEU is in the everyday efforts to strengthen it together with the economic efficiency, and this resource can be ensured by the political and civil discourse of the member states in the field of social-humanitarian cooperation. The development of the support base for integration processes includes such practices and resources that ensure interiorization of symbols, norms, values, and solidarity of the peoples and elites of the Eurasian Economic Union.

ЕАБР Специальный доклад 2018. Внешнеторговые операции стран – участниц ЕАЭС: Тенденции и потенциальные точки роста (EDB Special report 2018. Foreign Trade Operations of the Eurasian Economic Union Member Countries: Trends and Potential Growth Areas)

The process of integration in the Eurasian region is important for all states and after the 2014 Ukraine crisis, Russia’s greater Eurasian policy and the expansion of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), the conditions for integration have become more suitable than before. After a decade and a half of observer membership, Iran has finally become an official member of SCO in 2022, and it seems that due to the wide territorial contiguity from the borders of Türkiye to Afghanistan, new possibilities for regional integration have been created. This article is written with the aim of discussing Iran’s role in Eurasian integration after the membership in the SCO. The main question in this article is that how Iran can contribute to Eurasian regional integration within the framework of this organization? The author’s idea is that Iran’s membership in the SCO, through the increasing expansion of the connections of the Eurasian region to South Asia and the Middle East, provides more opportunities for cooperation in confronting the sources of regional insecurity, cooperation in the field of trade and the expansion of regional transport and communications and this issue can contribute to economic development, security and broader regional integration in the region. The author has tried to use the theory of regional integration and the method of qualitative content analysis of documents, texts, reports and news related to the Eurasian integration to verify the hypothesis. The findings of this research show that the greater Eurasian region needs a wider integration in the fields of economy, trade, communication and transportation, and the solution to reduce its problems is possible through the cooperation of all effective regional actors, and Iran is also one of the effective countries that has been a missing linkage in Eurasian integration and any comprehensive security and economic integration in Eurasia requires its active participation, which an official member of the SCO has created this opportunity.

The article examines the possibility of using the experience of customs regulation of the European Union (EU) in the post-Soviet area within the framework of the law of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and the legislation of the Russian Federation. A comparative legal analysis is carried out of the provisions of the previous codified acts in the customs sphere that was in force in the EU and the EAEU. A comparative legal analysis of the provisions of the codified acts used previously or still effective in the EU and EAEU customs sphere, is carried out. When comparing the provisions of previously used Community Customs Code and Customs Code of the Customs Union, special attention is paid to the identification of common and specific features in the conceptual apparatus, the classification of customs procedures, the status and conditions for obtaining the status of an authorized economic operator, the regulation of the risk analysis system in both acts, as well as the adoption procedures of the Codes taking into account the differences in the law-making procedures of integration associations. The study of the existing Customs Union code (in the EU) and the Customs Code of the EAEU was carried out through the prism of comparing the main novels of these acts, such as the introduction of the concepts of “single window”, “one-stop shop” and “centralized clearance”, as well as the use of electronic declaring. Due to the comparative legal analysis of codified acts in the customs sphere, the article suggests proposals on possible directions of using the European experience of customs regulation in the EAEU, taking into account existing doctrinal approaches on this issue. In the framework of the proposed proposals, the author considers possible ways of their implementation, particularly with regard to ensuring the compatibility of the transit customs systems of the EU and the EAEU, as well as mutual recognition of the status of the authorized economic operator in both integration associations. The analysis of the topic was carried out using a systematic approach and is based on formal and comparative legal methods.

The paper delivers a thorough organizational, economic and institutional analysis of the evolution of common transport policy (CTP) of the European Union (EU). Advanced European experience and practices on the issue are set as an unambiguous territorial and functional benchmark for the breakthrough integration project in the post-soviet space - the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU). When working out its own CTP the EEU faces similar challenges to that of the EU though Eurasian integration offers a unique opportunity to evade European mistakes on its way to creating a modern regional transport and logistics infrastructure at lower costs. The research identifies these failing points in the framework of the European CTP as following: (1) strong reluctance of the member states to surpass economic and political control over the transport industry on to the supranational level, (2) turning of special agencies responsible for the implementation of CTP into an independent actors with political ambitions and (3) inadequate involvement of public-private partnership mechanisms into the regional infrastructure projects. The authors claim a high potential of transport and logistics cooperation within the EEU stressing a pure economic rationale for the introduction of common norms and principles into the industry. Overall, they underline harsh negotiation process and consequently expect tangible results to come solely in the long-term perspective.

The article discusses the role of public procurement in the integration processes within the EAEU (Eurasian Economic Union). It highlights its significance both at the Union level, where it contributes to the creation of a single market for capital, goods, and services, as well as at the country level, where public procurement plays a significant role in socio-economic development and accounts for a substantial portion of government spending. Due to the critical importance of public procurement to the EAEU, the authors defined the term of public procurement quality management. This term refers to coordinated efforts by authorities responsible for regulating procurement processes, aimed at ensuring compliance with the principles underlying the public procurement systems of EAEU member states. The definition of this term emphasizes the significance of principles in ensuring high-quality public procurement quality management. The authors of the study analyzed the principles that govern the sphere of public procurement, as enshrined in the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and the national laws of the participating countries. They grouped these principles into six categories, and identified approaches that contribute to their implementation. Based on this analysis, they developed a matrix of approaches for quality management in public procurement. The authors also provided recommendations on the dissemination of best practices that could form the basis for the next stage of integration, aimed at creating a unified and efficient public procurement market in the region.

Russian and Chinese initiatives in Central Eurasia cannot be considered separate or mutually exclusive - Eurasian integration and the Silk Road Economic Belt complement rather than contradict each other. Successfully conjoining the two projects directly depends on Russian-Chinese relations that are based on mutual respect and political trust. Both sides are equally interested in maintaining a stable and safe Central Asia for fruitful cooperation, not competition. However, more systematic and consistent work between the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) and China requires a strong and effective institutional basis and structure. The solution thus includes two important aspects. The first implies a more powerful Eurasian Economic Commission and the extension of its competence to new areas. The second means creating a special institution for intergovernmental cooperation, which could serve as a platform for a multilateral dialogue and provide ongoing day-to-day support for decision-makers and different experts of all levels. Such a mechanism would also help to elaborate a common position and policy on China for the five EEU countries. The conjoining of the EEU and the Silk Road initiative would not only boost trade among states but is necessary to develop infrastructure and investment programmes. Such a multifaceted agenda would require serious technical preparation as well as force EEU countries to compromise, because only with consent can members truly benefit.

This article analyzes how China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has affected the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) as a project of regional economic integration. In particular, it examines whether the EAEU and the BRI are transforming the regional division of labor in the EAEU and providing the EAEU economic periphery new opportunities for industrialization and technological upgrading through insertion into international production networks. By comparing the EAEU and the BRI with other regional economic integration processes such as the EU, NAFTA, ASEAN+3 and Mercosur, it highlights the limits of the EAEU as a tool for economic integration and for enhancing Russia’s economic leadership in the region.

The Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), founded on May 29, 2014, represents a significant effort to enhance economic growth and prosperity among former Soviet states, notably Kazakhstan, Belarus, and Russia. Tracing its origin from the dissolution of the USSR and the subsequent establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in 1991, the EAEU emerged after overcoming initial challenges faced by the CIS, formalizing its structure in 2015. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the EAEU's historical evolution, institutional framework, and the dynamics of its economic integration. By examining the EAEU's impact on member economies, including achievements like the creation of a unified labour market and increased trade volumes, the study stresses its role in advancing regional economic cooperation. It also addresses persistent challenges such as disparities in energy resources and the union's limited supranational authority. Furthermore, this paper draws comparisons between the EAEU and the European Union (EU), offering perceptions into their differing organizational structures and levels of integration. Through this comparative lens, it elucidates how each union shapes regional dynamics and influences global economic relations.

Integration associations of different levels are actively developing in all regions of the world. Eight common markets, namely the European Economic Area (EEA), the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC), the East African Community (EAC), the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR), the Central American Common Market (CACM) and the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) are central. These are integration associations based on free trade and free exchange of all factors of production. The purpose of the study was to identify geographic differences in the depth of integration within the world’s common markets. The depth of integration is studied quantitatively using the index of integration depth developed by the authors. It is based on the principle of common approach to assessing integration across four freedoms, i. e. the movement of goods, services, people and capital, represented in the aggregate index by two indicators, namely openness (the ratio of a particular flow within the common market to the size of the country) and importance (the share of flows within the common market in all external flows). This approach allows to assess the country’s participation in both regional and international movement of production factors. The study revealed that common markets formed on similar principles differ significantly in the depth of integration. In contrast to the developed European common market, participants in the Asian, African and Latin American common markets are characterized by a much more intensive exchange of production factors with third countries than with each other. This is facilitated by the regional specific features of the processes of international economic integration. Only the EEA can be classified as a common market with high level of integration; the EEU, CACM, CSME and EAC are characterised by the low level of integration; and it is very low in the GCC, MERCOSUR and ECCAS. There are many centres of diffusion of integration processes in the EEA and CSME; the CACM, EAC, GCC and MERCOSUR have one main centre and one sub-centre; and there is one supercentre in the EEU. In most cases, the centre’s level of integration is one of the lowest within the market.

In the article the problem of selection of state support forms for the agricultural sector is considered as one of the most important sectors of economics. Main purpose of the article is to determine the tax areas in Belarus taking into account international experience in taxation and subsidies of farmers, and processes of integration in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). Agriculture with its sector particularity, social importance in solving problems of poverty, economic growth and food security is defined as a priority area of government funding. Main characteristics of tax incentives in developed countries were summarized based on national tax laws. It was concluded that, despite the preferential subsidies of the agricultural sector, tax regulators were widely used by different countries that allowed taking into account national particularity and priorities. Article reviewed current situation in the agricultural sector of the Republic of Belarus. Were studied directions of government financing of agriculture and peculiarities of its taxation. In the article were also generalized forms of tax exemptions for the producers of agricultural output. Were analyzed special tax regimes for agricultural organizations and peasant (farmer) households. Due to the active participation of the Republic in the integration entities were analyzed as well external factors, which influenced strategy of agricultural financing: commitments to reduce budget funds and taxes on farmers within the EAEU. Conclusions on need of reviewing mechanisms of national tax incentives were made, based on its effectiveness assessment and widening of the range of actions.