20.05.2006 Russia, Krasnodar region, Sochi. Russia’s second President Vladimir Putin and third President Dmitry Medvedev will often meet with Kazakhstan’s first President Nursultan Nazarbayev (R), who hasn’t abandoned the idea of creating the CES (Common Economic Space) consisting of two CIS states at least.
Photo: Dmitry Azarov
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Merging Russia’s Economy
// Nursultan Nazarbayev will suggest merging economies to Dmitry Medvedev
Russia’s third President to make his first visit abroad
Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev is going on his first overseas tour. Today he arrives in Astana for an official visit, and tomorrow he sets off for Beijing. Choosing Kazakhstan as Mr Medvedev’s foreign policy debut, Moscow demonstrates that the post-Soviet space is its priority. Kommersant special correspondent Vladimir Solovyov, who visited the Kazakh capital ahead of the Russian leader’s arrival, found out that Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev, pleased with the great honor, will in his turn propose a plan to Dmitry Medvedev envisaging a merger of the two economies.
CIS for the two
It’s not the first time in his life that Dmitry Medvedev engages in international politics. Prior to the March election the then head of state Vladimir Putin began to prepare his successor to address foreign policy matters on his own. First Mr Putin took the then First Deputy Prime Minister to important bilateral meetings with leaders of other countries, and after several master-classes of that kind he sent Mr Medvedev in Belgrade and Budapest to hold talks about constructing the South Stream gas pipeline.
The present Asia tour of Dmitry Medvedev is peculiar in that it’s his first overseas trip as Russia’s President. It starts with a visit to Astana – a city Mr Medvedev arrives in for an official visit today. It’s likely that the status of the visit and the fact that it is made to one of the CIS states is meant to underscore Moscow’s special attitude towards the post-Soviet space. The majority of the Russian mass media have already dubbed this trip “momentous event.”
On the other hand, after the eight years of Vladimir Putin’s ruling Russia, you can only use Kazakhstan to demonstrate the achievements of the CIS policy.
Relations with Georgia have been escalated, relations with Ukraine deteriorate day by day; as to Belarus, regardless of the longstanding process of founding a union, the situation gets permanently complicated. In Central Asia things are not that favorable for Russia, too. Turkmenistan, which has always been indifferent to the CIS, is trying to develop partnership with other countries, not only Russia, under the new President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov. Uzbekistan’s leader Islom Karimov, who seemed to have enjoyed closer relations with Moscow after the attempt of revolution in Andijon, has been more enthusiastic about the West. Dmitry Medvedev could visit one of the republics that are relatively loyal to Russia – Moldova, Kyrgyzstan or Tajikistan – but this countries are not that appealing in terms of Russia’s economic interests. So, there has been no alternative to Astana, which is linked with Moscow by impressive energy projects. “Medvedev could hardly choose which country to visit for the first time as President,” Birjan Murataliev, member of the Kazakh National and Economic Chamber of the Atameken alliance, argued when talking with Kommersant. “Why are there so many odds in the Commonwealth? Because for the last dozen of years Russia has barely cared about the outskirts. There has been no long-term programme of cooperation. Now the Russian government appears to remember that it once lived together with the other republics. In Kazakhstan Russia’s new President is expected to present a long-term strategy and mutually beneficial cooperation within the CIS.”
CES of the two
In Kazakhstan they appear pleased with the fact that Dmitry Medvedev decided to visit their country first. “Strategically, these are the most robust partners, friends and neighbors in the entire CIS,” Yermuhamet Yertysbaev, Nursultan Nazarbayev’s Political Advisor, boasted yesterday. At the same time the current visit is important for Mr Nazarbayev not only for the reason of demonstrating his close ties with Russia. Officials with the Administration of the Kazakh President told Kommersant that during the negotiations planned for the present visit of Mr Medvedev agreements will be signed about using outer space for peaceful purposes and using GLONASS (Global Navigation Satellite System). Nonetheless, the signing of the documents can be considered a mere formality. It’s energy that’ll be focused on during the visit. Moscow, which last week announced intent to construct the BTS-2 oil pipeline, reckons that Astana will join the project as one of the investors. This proposal has already been handed over to the Kazakh party, who are now considering the form of their participation in the project. Probably, the details of cooperation in this area will be discussed today.
Kommersant found out that during their tete-a-tete negotiations Mr Medvedev and Mr Nazarbayev (at his suggestion) will pay special attention to another ambitious project. A source of Kommersant reported that Nursultan Nazarbayev is going to raise the issue of integration of the economies of the two neighboring states. “Taking into account the level of economic development of the two states, we suggest that Russia consider a comprehensive agreement on cooperation and integration, which could bring us even closer,” the official told Kommersant. In fact Mr Nazarbayev suggests that Moscow revive the Common Economic Space (CES) project, which Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Belarus tried to bring about as far back as 2003. This time Kazakhstan insists on that the CES-2 must be built without Ukraine and Belarus participating. The Kazakh government opines that these countries impede integration, rather than foster it.
Yesterday Imangali Tasmagambetov, the current mayor of Astana, confirmed to Kommersant that this idea is regarded crucial with the Kazakh authorities. Mr Tasmagambetov is reputed one of the closest adherents of President Nazarbayev and one of his likely successors. “The President has always proved to Moscow that it’s pointless to tear our economic ties; on the contrary, we should integrate more intensively. Look what’s happening between Russia and Ukraine, Russia and Georgia, Russia and Belarus. And as to Kazakhstan, the situation is quite different. We do not aim to create another USSR, we just mean that merging our markets, we’ll become effective,” the politician deems.
Dmitry Medvedev won’t have to decide on Nursultan Nazarbayev’s integration initiative immediately. In the near future they’ll be ale to once again thrash it out during the forthcoming CIS summit in St.-Petersburg in June. And in a month and a half Dmitry Medvedev will have another reason to visit Astana. The thing is, on July 6 the Kazakh capital, which was moved from Alma-Ata to Tselinograd and then twice renamed on the initiative of Mr Nazarbayev, will celebrate its 10th anniversary. By the way, on the same day the longstanding Kazakh leader will celebrate his 68th anniversary, too. Vladimir Putin, Russia’s Prime Minister, has already received an invitation to the double fest, and today Dmitry Medvedev may be invited as well. Perhaps, when gathering together, the three principal heads of Kazakhstan and Russia will determine whether to set to founding another alliance on the post-Soviet territory or not.
Vladimir Solovyov
All the Article in Russian as of May 22, 2008
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