Armenian President attaches importance to approval of drafts of guidelines for macroeconomic policies within the EAEU

YEREVAN, 8 MAY, ARMENPRESS. On May 8,President of the Republic of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan, who is on a working visit to the capital of Moscow of the Russian Federation, participated in the session of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council at the Kremlin and delivered a speech.

As the Public Relations and Mass Media Department of the Structure to the Office of the President of the Republic of Armenia reports to “Armenpress”, the speech of the President of the Republic of Armenia reads as follows:

“Dear heads of states, I welcome you.

First, I would like to thank President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin for the cordial reception and for the organizing of the session of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council by partners in Russia.

This is the first official session of the year following the entry into force of the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union. I believe it is very symbolic that it is being held a day before the 70thanniversary of Victory Day, a holiday that is nothing but the symbol of the fraternity of our nations that made a decisive contribution to the destruction of Fascism.

Even today, the legacy of the great victory serves as a firm basis for the deepening of fraternal relations between our nations and the mutually beneficial cooperation between our countries. I congratulate us all on this wonderful anniversary.

Dear colleagues,

Starting early this year, the our countries established large-scale economic partnership in new realities and under new conditions, with a general market that has more than 170 million consumers and where the corresponding legal grounds for products, services, capital and the free mobility of the workforce are protected. The efforts need to be geared towards the increase in trade and investment flows, the strengthening of business relations, the reinforcement of EAEU institutions, and the final outcome must be to achieve a higher level of integration of our economies.

Today we will continue to work on the integration of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan to the Eurasian Integration Union. Armenia has completed the process of national coordination, which is required for the signing of drafts of protocols agreed upon during the session of the Eurasian Inter-Governmental Commission held in Moscow on 6 February 2015.

The Eurasian Economic Union is becoming a serious trade and economic unit that is attracting many countries, stretching from Latin America and extending to Asia. The steps aimed at enhancing trade and economic relations with different countries and the signing of agreements on cooperation with those countries contribute to the enlargement of our general market. I believe it is necessary to continue to expand the geography for cooperation towards the south, particularly through the establishment of closer relations with Iran.

The cooperation with China, which has one of the world’s largest economies and is one of the major trade partners of our Union, is of important significance for our countries and as tremendous potential. The deepening of this cooperation will allow to not only expand our general market and engage investments, but also join the implementation of large infrastructural projects, diversifying our Union’s logistics opportunities.

Dear colleagues,

Being under the influence of several unfavorable regional and international factors, our economic territory clashes with certain difficulties, the overcoming of which depends on how the decisions are developed and how effectively they are implemented. Our countries have achieved a certain level of integration, and the tendencies of global economic development require that we raise the level of coordination of our actions. The major step to take in this direction for the next two years will be the approval of a draft of the main guidelines for the macroeconomic policies of EAEU member states.

One of the major directions of our Union’s activities is the creation of a common energy market. Our countries have tremendous amounts of energy resources and have the potential to produce. We need to use this comparative advantage to raise the level of competitiveness of the EAEU in the world.

Another major direction for our joint activities is the liberalization of services in stages. Armenia is entirely part of the list of the common market for services. International experience shows that liberalization of the market for products in the process of economic integration without the liberalization of the market for services doesn’t allow to fully use the whole economic potential for the integration.

Dear heads of states,

A lot of work has been done during the period of activity of the EAEU. We believe it is necessary to keep up the pace. We can’t be satisfied with what we have achieved. We need to develop long-term programs. According to the Treaty, the major function is reserved for the Eurasian Economic Commission, which will form a new composition and, possibly, with a new format starting from February 1, 2016.

There is not much time left before that. Thus, I suggest becoming familiar with this issue during the next two to three months so that we can approve the composition of the commission and the chairman on the basis of the principle of rotation during the next summit.

Thank you for your attention."