Business & Economy

Kazakhstan considers Putin’s “Greater Eurasia” project possible

Nur-Sultan, May 26 (EFE).- Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said on Thursday that he saw the possibility of implementing Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s ambitious “Greater Eurasia” project that foresees increased economic cooperation between several former Soviet countries and China.

“The Greater Eurasia megaproject deserves a detailed discussion. Sooner or later we will implement it. And, as Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich (Putin) said, it is possible that other countries can join,” Tokayev told the plenary session of the Eurasian Economic Forum being held in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan.

Tokayev noted that other similar megaprojects, such as China’s New Silk Road, already have many participants.

Putin proposed the creation of Greater Eurasia in order to bring the economies of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) closer to China, in 2016.

Initially, the initiative also provided for the possibility of participation in Greater Eurasia by European countries.

“The Russian president made an absolutely rational proposal to involve interested countries in the integration process. Here we have China’s project of the New Silk Road, as well as other countries that really express interest in joining the processes of integration in the Eurasian space,” said Tokayev.

The Eurasian Economic Forum was held a day before the summit of the leaders of the EAEU, made up of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Russia, during which they are to discuss the group’s priorities amid unprecedented sanctions against Moscow for its military campaign in Ukraine.

The Eurasian Economic Union was formally established on January 1, 2015, and covers a territory of some 20.8 million square kilometers (8 million square miles) with more than 182 million inhabitants. EFE

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