Eurasec needs common policy, Nazarbayev says

Nursultan Nazarbayev, the president of Kazakhstan, said that the Eurasian Economic Community (Eurasec) member countries - Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan - should develop a common policy to gain access to global markets.

"It is extremely necessary for us to jointly formulate and consistently follow a common policy to achieve access to global markets," he said Friday, addressing the international forum "Eurasian Integration: Trends of Modern Development and Challenges of Globalization" in Astana.

According to Mr. Nazarbayev, "our countries' transit potential is obviously one of our indisputable advantages. It allows us to play the role of an efficient mediator in trade between Europe and Asia.

"Cooperation in this sphere, advantageous for all, is necessary.

"Coordinated policy in the sphere of railroad transportation and common tariffs for freight traffic should play an important role.

"Our region also has other absolute and relative advantages... large land resources for agriculture that cannot be found in any other part of the world.

"By pooling our efforts we will be able to ensure food supplies not only for our countries but also for a considerable part of the world.

"Our region, is one of the most energy-rich on the planet; we have tremendous natural energy resources. Their aggregate amount can be compared, I believe, only with the energy resources of the Middle East.

"By acting jointly for our common advantage, we will be able to creditably act in the world arena.

"In order to achieve this goal, it is necessary to form, as soon as possible, a common economic space inside which businessmen of each of our countries will find it advantageous to work.

"I am satisfied that an understanding on all these problems has been reached by the majority of the heads of the CIS countries."