"We have had everything integrated with Russia long time ago. So, it looks like, it shouldn't be nothing additional. But I think, it will be more losses", ex-head of the National Bank of Belarus Stanislav Bagdankevich expressed this opinion to UDF.BY on signed agreements by Medvedev, Lukashenko and Nazarbaev on November 18.
According to him, "if the government gave a task to a store - 70% of Belarusian goods and not more than 30% of foreign ones, then these administrative settings won't pass anymore".
"It's clear that an approved institution should intervene in this situation, and if there is a discrimination of some commodities in one of the countries, then it have be changed. So, that there are no restrictions on goods circulation in the markets of third countries. What will be the result, it's hard to say now, - the former head of the National Bank said. - I think, the doors to the West for Belarus are not closed. It only shows more linkage to Russia and Kazakhstan. I wouldn't say it's linked bad. The bad thing is that in Russia and Kazakhstan technologies and techniques are more backward than in Western Europe. So now we cling to the more backward segment. I must admit, that one day, we will have even pros from the integration of Belarus with the East. But since, for a civilization the most important is the culture of production and the rule of law, implemented not in the East but in the West, then in perspective we lose more than win".
As UDF.BY reported earlier, the heads of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan on Friday in the Kremlin signed the Declaration on the Eurasian Economic Integration and the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Commission.
The Declaration states a transition to the next stage of the integrative construction - the Common Economic Space (CES), based on norms and principles of the WTO and opened for accession by other states at any stage of its formation.
The document also identifies further ways of the integrative cooperation in the format of "a triplet". The ultimate goal is the establishment of the Eurasian Economic Union.
In accordance with the signed contract on the Eurasian Economic Commission, it is endowed with functions to manage processes of integration in the format of the CU and the CES, and should start its work on 1 January 2012.
