Dmitry Medvedev opens meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in Kazan

On May 26, during his working visit to Kazan, Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev took part in a meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council held at Kazan City Hall. Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov also attended the meeting.

The meeting's agenda included a wide range of topics related to integrated interaction as part of the Eurasian Economic Union, which unites Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

“Even at a time when the world economic situation is not entirely favourable, the major socioeconomic indicators of our countries are improving. From January to March, mutual trade rose by about one third compared to the same period last year. Exports to third countries grew at about the same rate. This represents a 30 billion US dollars increase in absolute terms. Each of our five countries has positive trends. A regulation took effect in May, which regulates the circulation of medicines and medical products in accordance with the common principles for all five countries,” Medvedev said in his opening speech.

“We have managed to lift the major barriers to the flow of goods, yet the flow of services, capital and labour still faces barriers. In the coming years we have to end approximately two dozen restrictions in industry, agriculture, energy, and technical regulation,” he continued.

He noted that there is a common interest in creating the best possible conditions for entrepreneurs to work on the union’s unified market. “We need to set up administrative procedures in such a way that they do not pressurise business, so as to help our companies successfully compete with colleagues from third countries. We have to complete as soon as possible the creation within our union of the so-called “single window” for dealing with foreign trade transactions so as to gradually move on to transborder paperless trade,” Medvedev pointed out.