Eurasian Economic Union: Opportunitiesand Barriers to Regional and Global Leadership

The Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) has recently emerged in the post-Soviet space and is generating heightened interest due to its potential to become a new regional and global economic actor.This article analyzes the effectiveness of the Eurasian integration process and proposes a number of recommendations to strengthen economic relations among the EEU members by identifying and building upon their common economic interests.This article notes the significant geo-economic potential of the EEU.However, benefits of the EEU are unevenly distributed among its participants.Russia, acting as an integrative hub, accounts for 80-87% of this potential.Moreover, these benefits lack consistency and a long-term orientation, which may ultimately pose a threat to the existence of the EEU if markets and international economic relations change.This article analyzes the interdependency of the national economies within the EEU through an examination of intra-EEU investment cooperation and mutual trade in goods and services.It concludes that the current level of economic integration does not point to a strengthening of Eurasian integration.The volume of trade among customs union members has not increased since its establishment in 2010 despite the huge benefits of this union.The structure of manufacturing has remained unchanged, as has the level of cooperation.To strengthen the EEU, the article suggests developing and implementing a common industrial and agricultural policy.It also proposes an approach to estimate the results of this policy.