EAEU Begins Free Trade Talks With Tunisia - Kyrgyz President

ASTANA (Kazakhstan), May 29 (Bernama-Sputnik/RIA Novosti) -- The Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) has launched negotiations on a free trade agreement with Tunisia, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov said on Friday, reported Sputnik/RIA Novosti.

"Today, the EAEU has trade agreements in force with Vietnam, Iran, China and Serbia. We expect free trade agreements with the UAE [United Arab Emirates], Mongolia and Indonesia to enter into force in the near future. I would also note that the talks with India are at an active stage, and today, the negotiation process with the Tunisian Republic has begun," Japarov said at a meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council in Astana.

Furthermore, work is underway to deepen trade ties with a number of other countries, the Kyrgyz leader added.

Japarov also said he was confident that actively concluding new trade agreements within the EAEU would open significant opportunities for producers and exporters.

The free trade agreement with Tunisia will enable the EAEU to access the African market, Bakytzhan Sagintayev, chairman of the Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC), said after the organisation’s summit in Astana.

"The EAEU is systematically expanding its network of preferential agreements. Tunisia is a strategic gateway to the fast-growing African market for the Eurasian Five countries," Sagintayev told reporters.

He also said a decision was made to update certain provisions of the 2019 agreements with Serbia.

"We are talking about simplifying the requirements for shipping documents in the current free trade agreement. This step will help to significantly streamline customs clearance for goods moving between the EAEU and Serbia," the EEC board chairman said.

Such measures broaden cooperation opportunities between the Union’s member states and other countries, Sagintayev said, adding that this work is being carried out in a systematic and continuous manner.

--BERNAMA-SPUTNIK/RIA NOVOSTI