Time to Discuss Currency Union Between Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan – Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the time has come to talk about the possibility of forming a currency union between Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan.

ASTANA (Sputnik) – The time has come for Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan to look into creating a currency union, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday.

“We think the time has come to talk about the possibility of forming a currency union. Working shoulder to shoulder, it’s easier to react to external financial and economic threats and protect our joint market,” Putin said after a meeting with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev in the capital of Kazakhstan.

The three leaders discussed the perspectives of mutual trade cooperation. They also talked about world economic trends and the situation in Ukraine.

Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan are long-time economic partners and founding members of the Eurasian Economic Union, a bloc to enable the free flow of goods, capital and labor between the member nations. The union came into being January 1, 2015.