"But for the EU's Eastern Partnership Project (EaP) that Russia has perceived as a threat from the very beginning, there would be no Eurasian Economic Union (EEU),", Marat Terterov, Principal Director of the European Geopolitical Forum (Brussels) said in response to ArmInfo's question in an online press conference.
"In this light, EEU's expansion is also a kind of reaction to the EU policy and, to some extent, to NATO policy. There is certain public narrative in Russia based on the principle 'we are being surrounded,' 'Russia has never made the first step against West, while West has always gone to the East.' This narrative is broadcasted on television. Meanwhile, Russia would like deeper economic and cultural cooperation, a visa free regime, and united economic opportunities with Europe. The entire elite of Russia, Armenia and of other post-Soviet countries are in Vienna, Paris, and London. They feel good there," he said. Terterov does not deny that EurAsEC, the legal foundation for the EEU, was launched before the Eastern Partnership and NATO's expansion into the Baltic States. Terterov admits that EurAsEC had logic, although he supports the idea of the Soviet Union light. The major problem of that potential union is united management and united market. Particularly, it would be difficult to achieve a consensus in such important sectors of economy as motor industry, energy sector, fish and tobacco productions and other sectors that ensure the key revenues of these countries' national budgets.
"Officials do not want to cede their markets, because borders bring profits, money. Furthermore, it is very difficult to change economy in oligarchic countries. The idea of the
EEU is good, but it will hardly manage to change the business culture in the short-term outlook," Terterov said.
The press conference was organized with the support from the UK Embassy in Armenia as part of the project "Relevant Dialogues for Armenian Media" implemented by the Region Research Center.