The presidents discuss "a plan for the future, in order to have the first package of documents on trade liberalization, adjusted foreign trade policy, determination of common customs tariffs, development of a common competitive environment, and establishment of a single regulating body prepared as soon as in 2005-2006," official Spokesman for the Russian Foreign Ministry Alexander Yakovenko said.
The presidents of the four countries signed the CES Agreement in Yalta on September 19, 2003, and had it ratified by the parliaments of all member states. Step-by-step integration is to result in a free trade area without exception and limitation; common principles of development and application of technical standards and procedures; favorable macroeconomic policy; and common principles of competition policy and management of natural monopolies' activity.
Representatives of the four countries emphasize that their legislative powers have all but synchronously ratified the CES Agreement signed in September 2003 in Yalta.
Kazakh Deputy Prime Minister Sauat Mynbayev told RIA Novosti that during the summit, on May 23-24, the parties would exchange instruments of ratification.
"The CES has been completed theoretically - the political will of the leaders is backed by the political will of parliaments, and now that I could say the new political organization is technically ready, the real work begins - to translate the organization into reality," he said.
Mynbayev said that to create the CES, about 100 various agreements are to be concluded. "This is a great job, and it takes real professionalism. This is not about negotiating - these agreements are to be written on paper. We settled the funding of this work - that each party (to the Agreement) shall send money to a common account; with this money a team of professionals shall be hired to come up with these agreements, each within its own professional scope. Then these agreements shall be submitted to experts for consideration, and after experts' approval - further submitted to a so-called High-Level Group," he also said.
According to a source in the Russian government, there are no plans to sign any documents at the summit. "Although the summit implies that the end of the first stage of formation of the CES and transfer to the second one are to be fixed, there are no plans to sign any documents," the source said.
