... flexible pricing policy on a larger scale, which neither the U.S., nor the Maghreb, nor Iran can afford. Therefore, even if the European Union were to enact all phases of the three-stage sanctions roadmap, they would affect certain categories of goods and ... ... in the thick of the geo-economic confrontation between the two trade areas, closing in on it from either side. Although the Customs Union is a new and institutionally weak grouping, it is clear that an attempt at reformatting the economic space could ...
... development. In addition, the consequences for the communications sector, advantages for the Armenian business, and practical gains from the FTA in the absence of a common border with the CU member states are all not clear.
To a certain extent, the Customs Union (as well as the Eurasian Union in a broader sense) and the European Union mirror each other, both plagued by many unresolved technical problems. At the same time, the positions of Moscow and Brussels are certainly similar. Mr. Lavrov says there is every reason "to conjugate the processes of European and ...
... EU partners.
Photo: voanews.com
Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting
with Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych
Opting for the Customs Union, Ukraine would also strengthen its bargaining positions on the international stage and within the European Union. The Customs Unions has always stood guard on the interests of its producers and protected them from unfair competition. Becoming part of the Customs Union, Ukraine would enjoy more trade preferences, among others, with Europe, than under the association agreement....
... Association Agreement. It’s been known that such an agreement would be against Russia’s well-articulated geopolitical interests, and that it would much prefer to see its South-Western neighbour join its own regional integration project, the Customs Union. It’s been known that Moscow will deploy every tool to undermine it – and that it has a number of areas for potential blackmail. It’s been known that therefore Ukraine will decide the integration contest Russia had provoked ...
... viewed as an inadequate response to the obvious achievements of post-Soviet integration that have led to the establishment of the Customs Union.
Economic and political integration offers the only efficient pattern for the evolution of Europe over its history.... ... political environment, the expansion of the Eastern Partnership is costly to all the parties involved, i.e. Ukraine, Russia and the European Union. The economic and political realities of today are discrediting the ideology of European unity, the product of ...
... relationship, making it markedly more sophisticated. Whereas now the dialog is aligned towards Russia – EU members and Moscow-Brussels, now additional tiers emerge, i.e. EU – Customs Union and Eurasian Economic Commission and EU members – Customs Union.
A negative scenario for relations between the European Union and CU-CES could be the absence of cooperation and tough competition over influence in the post-Soviet space, followed by the obligatory choice of a rival project for countries of the region. The prospect is to definitely obstruct a positive ...
... Warsaw: CASE – Center for Social and Economic Research, 2012. Available on-line: http://www.case-research.eu/en/node/57857
[8] Veronika Movchan and Ricardo Giucci: Quantitative Assessment of Ukraine’s Regional Integration Options: DCFTA with European Union vs. Customs Union with Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. Berlin/Kyiv: Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting. November 2011. Available on-line: http://www.ier.com.ua/files/publications/Policy_papers/German_advisory_group/2011/PP_05_2011_eng.pdf
...
... there is no way a relatively energy-poor EU (itself relying on Russian gas to a degree), can outperform Russia at home.
The European Union is also clearly asking a lot in return for the trade boost that the DCFTA would mean for Ukraine, and the recognition ... ... sides, any advancement in the EU-Ukraine relations is unlikely as no side bows to the other. Whether an agreement to join the Customs Union will be reached is not for this article to reveal - but, amidst fears of 'becoming just another governor ...
In Search of an Answer: From Chernovtsy to Brussels
Early in 2013, Ukraine is again facing a difficult choice of integration strategies. In fact, the European Union, which Ukraine has been so eager to join is undergoing a severe economic crisis, while the Common Economic Space – Customs Union (CES-CU) is gaining strength even in these economically tough times. The overall historical and political context suggests that Kiev will again fail to choose a clear trajectory. However, the preference, albeit declarative, that Ukraine ...
Ukraine’s foreign policy towards its Eastern and Western neighbours could ultimately lead to broader international consequences that one would expect. Its decision to sign the Association agreement with the European Union or joining the Customs Union with Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, might take the story of one of the sides much deeper than to wider economic cooperation, trade or visa liberalization. European Ukraine Approach of the European Union can be perceived as very ambiguous ...
