Luke Rodeheffer
The Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU)—comprising Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan—continues to promote regional integration despite its decade-long existence yielding a resounding lack of results. A new set of procedures to deepen integration processes, known as the “Lead Protocol No.4” («IV Большой» протокол; “IV Bol’shoi” protokol), was approved by the Supreme Council—the trade bloc’s governing body—this summer and was introduced into Kazakhstan’s parliament. The text was posted on the official government portal to allow citizens to review it (Eurasian Economic Commission, September 25). Kazakhstan’s press noted in October that the protocol contains provisions by Russia to exempt its armaments industry from the proposed integrated EAEU procurement system (Exclusive.kz, October 5). The provisions include language on “alterations regarding the laws of the Russian Federation concerning government defense procurements,” which allows the Kremlin to maintain a special system for its military-industrial complex that is exempt from oversight of the Eurasian Economic Commission, the governing body of the EAEU. This contradicts the EAEU’s drive to grant the body more powers to remove trade barriers and regulate a common market across the five EAEU member states and their trade partners (EAEU, accessed November 17).
Russia has also introduced tougher measures earlier this year to limit guest worker access to its labor market, and the country’s Immigration Service frequently refuses to reregister guest workers if they move jobs (Eurasianet, September 9). These shifts in Russian guest worker policy contradict the central goals of the EAEU on the creation of a common labor market and conflict with the EAEU’s own laws, which allow EAEU citizens to reregister with new labor contracts (Radio Azatutyun, January 18).
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