WEBVTT 1 00:00:05.320 --> 00:00:06.438 Good afternoon, colleagues. 2 00:00:06.438 --> 00:00:11.354 Allow me to briefly inform you about the results of our work today. 3 00:00:11.354 --> 00:00:16.562 The Itinerary of today’s events in Sochi has been busy and substantive. 4 00:00:16.562 --> 00:00:21.844 The meetings of the CIS Heads of State Council and the Supreme Eurasian 5 00:00:21.844 --> 00:00:26.393 Economic Council took place in a very constructive atmosphere. 6 00:00:26.393 --> 00:00:30.721 There was a detailed exchange of views on the entire range 7 00:00:30.721 --> 00:00:35.783 of cooperation within the framework of both integration associations, 8 00:00:35.783 --> 00:00:39.305 and concrete plans for the future were outlined. 9 00:00:39.305 --> 00:00:42.679 During the CIS Heads of State Council meeting, 10 00:00:42.679 --> 00:00:47.668 we informed our partners about the results of Russia’s Commonwealth 11 00:00:47.668 --> 00:00:49.355 chairmanship this year. 12 00:00:49.355 --> 00:00:53.610 Following discussions in a restricted and expanded format, 13 00:00:53.610 --> 00:00:58.306 decisions were made on adapting the Commonwealth’s multilateral 14 00:00:58.306 --> 00:01:01.460 cooperation mechanisms to modern realities. 15 00:01:01.460 --> 00:01:04.975 In particular, there will be a redistribution of authority between 16 00:01:04.975 --> 00:01:09.417 the Heads of State Council and the Heads of Government Council. 17 00:01:09.417 --> 00:01:14.351 Now the governments will deal with a broader range of issues while 18 00:01:14.351 --> 00:01:19.505 the leaders will not be weighed down with routine matters and will be 19 00:01:19.505 --> 00:01:23.924 able to concentrate on formulating strategies and key areas 20 00:01:23.924 --> 00:01:26.353 of the association’s development. 21 00:01:26.353 --> 00:01:31.066 In addition, the CIS Executive Committee’s proposals on further 22 00:01:31.066 --> 00:01:36.221 streamlining the activity of the CIS Economic Council and the Foreign 23 00:01:36.221 --> 00:01:38.577 Ministers Council were approved. 24 00:01:38.577 --> 00:01:43.511 We agreed to extend Executive Committee Chairman and CIS Executive 25 00:01:43.511 --> 00:01:47.119 Secretary Mr Lebedev’s mandate by two more years. 26 00:01:47.119 --> 00:01:49.622 We hope that under his leadership, 27 00:01:49.622 --> 00:01:53.893 the Executive Committee will continue working efficiently 28 00:01:53.893 --> 00:01:56.164 to achieve the Commonwealth’s goals. 29 00:01:56.164 --> 00:02:00.124 We discussed in detail with our partners how to use the potential 30 00:02:00.124 --> 00:02:03.928 of the CIS to increase trade and investment and expand 31 00:02:03.928 --> 00:02:06.959 industrial and technological cooperation. 32 00:02:06.959 --> 00:02:10.878 We agreed to take further efforts to encourage trade, 33 00:02:10.878 --> 00:02:14.945 which has increased by 25 percent to reach $75 billion 34 00:02:14.945 --> 00:02:17.015 since the start of the year. 35 00:02:17.015 --> 00:02:21.378 To do this we should work more actively to harmonise norms 36 00:02:21.378 --> 00:02:26.405 and standards of the CIS and the Eurasian Economic Union and remove 37 00:02:26.405 --> 00:02:30.250 barriers to the free movement of goods and services. 38 00:02:30.250 --> 00:02:34.982 Cultural cooperation has special significance for our countries. 39 00:02:34.982 --> 00:02:38.827 We have decided to continue the practice of holding 40 00:02:38.827 --> 00:02:44.077 thematic years in the CIS. The Year of the Family is coming to a close. 41 00:02:44.077 --> 00:02:48.218 Next year, 2018, will be the Year of Culture, and 2019 – 42 00:02:48.218 --> 00:02:52.728 the Year of Books. The year 2020 will be devoted to the 75th 43 00:02:52.728 --> 00:02:56.425 anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War. 44 00:02:56.425 --> 00:03:02.719 In addition, we have chosen the next cultural capitals of the CIS – 45 00:03:02.719 --> 00:03:08.634 the Azerbaijani city of Gyandzha will be succeeded 46 00:03:08.634 --> 00:03:10.827 by the Armenian city of Goris. 47 00:03:10.827 --> 00:03:17.824 Then Brest will be the CIS cultural capital, 48 00:03:17.824 --> 00:03:20.278 followed by Kazakhstan’s Shymkent. 49 00:03:20.278 --> 00:03:24.393 We have agreed to continue close coordination on foreign 50 00:03:24.393 --> 00:03:29.591 policy and security. The CIS states are together confronting the threat 51 00:03:29.591 --> 00:03:32.984 posed by the spread of terrorism and extremism, 52 00:03:32.984 --> 00:03:37.749 and intend to increase the exchange of information and experience 53 00:03:37.749 --> 00:03:41.358 between competent bodies, including in the effort 54 00:03:41.358 --> 00:03:44.535 to counter the laundering criminal proceeds. 55 00:03:44.535 --> 00:03:48.722 With this aim in view, we have endorsed today the concept 56 00:03:48.722 --> 00:03:52.837 for cooperation in countering the financing of terrorism 57 00:03:52.837 --> 00:03:55.869 and the concept for combatting corruption, 58 00:03:55.869 --> 00:03:59.406 as well as a number of other important documents. 59 00:03:59.406 --> 00:04:03.521 The CIS chairmanship will pass from Russia to Tajikistan 60 00:04:03.521 --> 00:04:08.503 on January 1, 2018. I am sure that our colleagues in Tajikistan will 61 00:04:08.503 --> 00:04:13.628 continue working effectively to develop diverse cooperation in the CIS. 62 00:04:13.628 --> 00:04:17.599 We sincerely wish them success and are naturally ready 63 00:04:17.599 --> 00:04:20.775 to help them in this work as much as we can. 64 00:04:20.775 --> 00:04:24.198 At the meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council, 65 00:04:24.198 --> 00:04:28.686 we exchanged views on the status and prospects of the Union’s 66 00:04:28.686 --> 00:04:31.628 development and noted the growing positive influence of integration 67 00:04:31.628 --> 00:04:35.233 processes on the economies of our countries. 68 00:04:35.233 --> 00:04:40.409 I am pleased to say that the leaders of all Union countries reaffirmed 69 00:04:40.409 --> 00:04:45.585 their interest in the continued comprehensive deepening of integration 70 00:04:45.585 --> 00:04:50.251 and supported the accelerated completion of domestic procedures 71 00:04:50.251 --> 00:04:54.334 to ratify the common Customs Code to make sure it comes 72 00:04:54.334 --> 00:04:56.521 into force on January 1, 2018. 73 00:04:56.521 --> 00:05:00.530 We agreed to expand cooperation in the digital economy. 74 00:05:00.530 --> 00:05:05.634 To that end, the Council approved the main components of implementing 75 00:05:05.634 --> 00:05:08.404 the Union’s digital agenda until 2025. 76 00:05:08.404 --> 00:05:13.580 The Group of Five made the decision to develop an interstate programme 77 00:05:13.580 --> 00:05:18.537 for cooperation in outer space services and in integrating existing 78 00:05:18.537 --> 00:05:21.526 national systems of Earth remote sensing. 79 00:05:21.526 --> 00:05:26.265 We invited our partners to make more active use of the resources 80 00:05:26.265 --> 00:05:30.275 of the Eurasian Development Bank and the Eurasian Fund 81 00:05:30.275 --> 00:05:33.628 for Stabilisation to finance joint industrial, 82 00:05:33.628 --> 00:05:36.690 agricultural and infrastructural projects. 83 00:05:36.690 --> 00:05:39.460 This will provide an additional boost 84 00:05:39.460 --> 00:05:42.741 to the diversification of national economies. 85 00:05:42.741 --> 00:05:47.699 Of course, we did not fail to address issues related to the Union’s 86 00:05:47.699 --> 00:05:52.218 cooperation with other countries and integration associations. 87 00:05:52.218 --> 00:05:56.022 Priority in this area will be given to deepening our cooperation with 88 00:05:56.022 --> 00:05:59.675 CIS member states that are so far not members 89 00:05:59.675 --> 00:06:01.952 of the Eurasian Economic Union. 90 00:06:01.952 --> 00:06:05.183 I would like to note that, as you could see, 91 00:06:05.183 --> 00:06:10.398 the Eurasian Economic Union’s expanded meeting was attended by a guest, 92 00:06:10.398 --> 00:06:12.748 President of Moldova Igor Dodon. 93 00:06:12.748 --> 00:06:18.036 It is noteworthy that all Union member countries support his aspiration 94 00:06:18.036 --> 00:06:20.769 to establish closer cooperation between the Eurasian 95 00:06:20.769 --> 00:06:22.772 Economic Union and Moldova. 96 00:06:22.772 --> 00:06:25.069 It may be recalled that the Eurasian Economic Commission has been 97 00:06:25.069 --> 00:06:27.723 entrusted with drafting a statute on Eurasian Economic 98 00:06:27.723 --> 00:06:29.649 Union observer countries. 99 00:06:29.649 --> 00:06:32.578 According to the President of Moldova, 100 00:06:32.578 --> 00:06:37.820 the overwhelming majority of his country’s citizens take a positive 101 00:06:37.820 --> 00:06:40.996 view of his intention to expand relations with Eurasian 102 00:06:40.996 --> 00:06:42.946 Economic Union countries. 103 00:06:42.946 --> 00:06:48.252 But that is only natural, as the main market for Moldovan goods are, 104 00:06:48.252 --> 00:06:50.843 of course, Eurasian Economic Union countries, 105 00:06:50.843 --> 00:06:54.806 primarily Russia. For our part, we – I am talking about Russia now – 106 00:06:54.806 --> 00:07:00.185 will build our relations with Moldova based on the extent to which 107 00:07:00.185 --> 00:07:02.978 Moldova itself and the people of Moldova are ready 108 00:07:02.978 --> 00:07:04.885 to expand this cooperation. 109 00:07:04.885 --> 00:07:09.527 It was noted at the meeting that the Eurasian Economic Union should 110 00:07:09.527 --> 00:07:14.108 continue to foster cooperation with potential partners 111 00:07:14.108 --> 00:07:16.106 among foreign countries. 112 00:07:16.106 --> 00:07:19.407 We will do all we can to facilitate this process. 113 00:07:19.407 --> 00:07:23.061 In 2018, the chairmanship of the Eurasian Economic Union 114 00:07:23.061 --> 00:07:28.019 will pass to Russia. We intend to maintain the high pace of integration 115 00:07:28.019 --> 00:07:31.584 efforts that has been achieved and hope for closer 116 00:07:31.584 --> 00:07:33.470 cooperation with our Union partners. 117 00:07:33.470 --> 00:07:37.935 As part of the CIS and SEEC summits, there were bilateral meetings, 118 00:07:37.935 --> 00:07:41.494 in particular with the Presidents of Tajikistan, Moldova, 119 00:07:41.494 --> 00:07:44.434 Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. 120 00:07:44.434 --> 00:07:47.247 My colleagues and I had substantive discussions of key 121 00:07:47.247 --> 00:07:50.345 issues of the bilateral and regional agenda. 122 00:07:50.345 --> 00:07:54.267 Overall, we are satisfied with the work that has been done. 123 00:07:54.267 --> 00:07:58.153 We believe that the results of today’s summits will help further deepen 124 00:07:58.153 --> 00:08:00.565 cooperation in the CIS and the EAEU. 125 00:08:00.565 --> 00:08:02.359 Thank you for your attention.