VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
“I have to stress that the Customs Union and the Common Economic Space (CES) are not an exclusive club. We are open to the accession of other countries, we are ready for closer cooperation with the European Union, including in the format of a constructive dialogue between the Common Economic Space and the EU.”
“You know about our project to build the Vostochny spaceport in Russia’s Far East. We could bring on Ukrainian specialists during the early stage of this project – they could take part in the construction of the spaceport. Most important, they should understand when spacecraft will be launched from it, what they will be like and where they will be produced.”
“We have a number of good, and interesting, projects planned in the investment field. I'll mention only one of those – the consolidation of the assets of two major car manufacturers: KamAZ and MAZ. The establishment of such a strategic alliance will naturally increase the competitiveness of Belarusian and Russian enterprises and create new stable, high-paying jobs. And this would, undoubtedly, be a significant step within the integration process relating to the real economy.”
“The establishment of the Customs Union should be backed by the active development of Russian-Belarusian trade and economic ties. In 2010, we saw an 18% increase in trade, and we will try to maintain this positive trend this year. Expanding industrial cooperation and creating favourable conditions for trade and interregional partnership have been a focus of our attention as well. We will also strive to encourage work in the high-tech sector, in the fuel and energy sector for instance. I am referring to our plans to build a nuclear power station in Belarus.”
“The establishment of the Customs Union promotes our membership in the WTO, believe me. There are several reasons for this. First, our colleagues see that though we are willing to join, we can also do without the WTO. They are also eager to see Russia among the countries that use the unified economic rules and interpret them similarly. So they have accelerated the process of admitting Russia. That is why the establishment of the Customs Union has accelerated, rather than hindered, our movement toward the WTO.”
“Last year, when we all were suffering from the crisis, Russia supported Armenia. On your request we drew up and issued 500 million dollars in a soft loan with a maturity of 15 years. Despite a certain overall decrease, this allowed us to shore up both our bilateral trade and Russia's investment in the Armenian economy, which amounts to between 2.8 billion to 3 billion. Not a single Russian company has withdrawn from Armenia's economy. This goes for Gazprom, INTER RAO UES, JSFC Sistema, VTB Bank and many other companies. In total, several thousand companies comprising Russian capital are operating in Armenia.”
“It is worth mentioning that these measures are the first actual integration efforts in 15 years. I’m referring to the establishment of the Customs Union between Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus and the next step which we are approaching – the establishment of a Common Economic Space. I would like to emphasise that this will mean a deep economic integration which will allow us to be more competitive. We will have a large market – 140 million in this country, 15 million in Kazakhstan plus 10 million in Belarus – look, this market can be compared to that of the European Union.”
“CES, similarly to the customs union before that, is being formed in a very short time, without exaggeration, in record time. Such a pace is made possible by the constructive spirit of all participants in this process, as well as a tremendous amount of work. I say this without exaggeration: the effort at the expert and industry levels was enormous. And I want to thank all the government officials for the contribution you have made to this major, very important process, a matter of strategic importance for our country.”
“Eurasian economic community is the undisputed leader of integration in the post-Soviet space. Over its 10-year history, EurAsEC has become a mature and influential regional organisation. Our five countries are successfully promoting joint social and economic initiatives. We also cooperate in the cultural sphere, increasing the tempo and improving the quality of our joint work. The Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan has grown into the community's centerpiece project. Since its launch, it has already brought tangible benefits to some enterprises and even entire industries, and has accelerated post-crisis economic recovery.”
“Ukraine is one of Russia's most important partners, not only in the CIS but in the entire world. Russian businesses are increasing investment. Russia comes second after Germany in terms of investments in the Ukrainian economy. We must keep up the pace of the progress we've made recently and maintain our competitive advantages in order to develop our own economies, solve social problems and operate effectively in the markets of other countries. We are determined to follow this road”.
