MINSK, June 23 (RIA Novosti) - Leaders of Eurasian Economic Community countries will meet in Russia in August to discuss the legal basis for a customs union, the secretary general said Friday.
Grigory Rapota said Eurasec nations - Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Belarus - already had formed a customs union, which envisioned no customs duties or taxes for imports or exports on the organization's territory.
"An annual session of the interstate council of heads of state was held in St. Petersburg in January but the council will meet for another, extraordinary meeting in mid-August in Russia," Rapota said, adding that the venue remained to be identified.
He said Eurasec leaders would focus on the documents that would lay a legal basis for the customs union.
"It is a top priority now," Rapota said, adding that the work was advancing slowly.
"We are addressing the task with due consideration for [Eurasec] countries' ambition to join the WTO," Rapota said.
He said Russia and Kazakhstan had advanced the most in negotiations with the World Trade Organization. The other Eurasec nations have not started talks with the global trade body yet.
"These talks are proceeding along with negotiations within the European Union," he said.
He concluded that the goal was to complete the customs union by 2007.
Apart from harmonizing their customs legislation within Eurasec, its members will also have to bring their legislation into line with WTO requirements if they are to join the organization.
Rapota added that a customs union also meant an agreement was needed on customs duties for third countries trading with Eurasec.
