(Source: AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner)
MOSCOW (TASS)—Israel is interested in signing an agreement on the free trade zone with the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) as soon as possible, the country’s Minister of Immigrant Absorption, Zeev Elkin, told Russian reporters on Wednesday, TASS reports.
“We believe that this has a big potential also for Israel’s economy and there may be also the interest for the countries part of the Customs Union,” said the minister, who also co-chairs a Russian-Israeli inter-governmental commission.
“I think there is no reason to delay this,” he said.
Israel has given “high priority” to the talks on the free trade zone with the EEU, Elkin said. “We are sincerely interested in doing this efficiently to the maximum level, and we propose that the Russian side should launch talks already in early 2016 and hold at least two rounds of negotiations in 2016,” he said.
Elkin said it is difficult to forecast the exact date for reaching the deal. “This depends on the number of difficult issues but as a rule if the work is normal, then it is possible to reach signing such an agreement in two years,” he said.
“For our part, we will do our utmost so that this happens as soon as possible,” the minister stressed.
The Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) is an economic bloc led by Russia which came into force in January 2015 and now consists of Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
Source: Asbarez
Link: Israel Hopes to Sign Deal on Free Trade Zone with Eurasian Economic Union
