Ukraine has taken a step, albeit a small one, towards the Single Economic Space. The whole point is whether this step will be followed by something else. Receiving Viktor Khristenko, chairman of the Eurasian Economic Commission’s board, in Kyiv, Prime Minister Mykola Azarov of Ukraine said: “We would like to suggest that you explore the possibility of Ukraine’s representation in the Eurasian Economic Commission as an observer.” As a result, Ukraine and the Eurasian Economic Commission signed two memorandums – on cooperation in trade and on cooperation in technical regulation.
It will be recalled that the Eurasian Economic Commission was established by decision of the presidents of Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan in late 2011. It is the only standing regulatory body of the Customs Union and the Single Economic Space. It enjoys the status of a supranational administrative body, which was the main, but not the only, reason why Ukraine refused to join this organization whose decisions are binding on the territory of the member states.
Among the factors that hinder Ukraine’s real participation in all the economic associations being formed on the former USSR’s territory are numerous exceptions from and restrictions on the rules of trade, which have not been canceled since CIS was established. The CIS free trade area agreement, which Ukraine has ratified, is coming into force on September 23, but exceptions and other obstacles to reciprocal commodity exchange still remain.
“Ukraine has ratified the CIS free trade area agreement, and this treaty will take effect on September 23,” Azarov noted at the meeting with Khristenko, but he also mentioned the factors that mar this event. “With due account of the routine procedures, which are, unfortunately, being delayed, we would like to hold consultations in the near future on extending the agreement on duty-free supplies of pipes to Customs Union countries in 2013,” Azarov said. He also emphasized: “I hope that the Customs Union will discuss in the near future the liberalization of a special protective customs duty on the imported Ukrainian caramel.” In the Ukrainian premier’s words, Ukraine is also disappointed by the Russian government’s imposition of an automobile disposal fee on Ukrainian-made products. “We have drawn up and are going to submit to the Eurasian Economic Commission a petition on the revision, liberalization, and, finally, cancellation of this measure,” the premier said.
Petro Poroshenko, Minister for Economic Development and Trade, also raised this question at a meeting with Khristenko. “We hope very much that we will manage to make a joint statement to this effect at the heads of government summit, traditionally to be held in the Crimea on September 28, coordinate our positions on reciprocal access to mechanical engineering products and achieve progress as far as the disposal fee is concerned,” Poroshenko said. But he is aware that there will be no immediate reaction to his wishes. “I hope agreements will be signed in Yalta. I am optimistic that we will manage to do so by mid-December. If the two sides show a political will, it will be realistic to solve the problem of the cancellation or liberalization of tough protective measures with respect to the goods produced by both countries,” he added.
Will the Russian side show this will? The answer can be looked for in Khristenko’s letter of response. He notes that Ukrainian-Russian trade cooperation is worth “dozens and dozens of billions of dollars, and the history of these relations is hundreds of years long. In Khristenko’s words, “a regular dialogue is an effective and correct way to address in a regular, not special, manner the problems which we have already been tackling and settling in the past.” Finally, he promised: “From this angle, within the framework of our competence, we are interested in rendering fast and effective help and finding answers to the most difficult questions. I always say that the quality of relations between partners should be assessed not by the absence of problems between them but by their ability to discuss and resolve any, even a very pressing, problem. The decision may differ from the one that two sides expected, but there is always a possibility to lay any problem on the table. We are laying the groundwork for the Customs Union and the government of Ukraine to be able to have this kind of a systemic dialogue.” Let us take a magnifying glass and look for a political will in these “exercises on a given theme…” No chance! Just a talkfest… Even empty promises were immediately reduced to decisions which may differ from the ones that were expected or counted on.
