Putin Responds to Pashinyan and Lukashenko on Gas Issues

The unified gas transit tariff within the EAEU cannot be implemented at the current level of integration. This was stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin during a video address at the Eurasian Economic Forum.

Addressing the proposed unified tariff for gas transportation and transit services by Armenia and Belarus, Putin stated that the unified tariff can only be realized in the context of a single market with a unified budget and taxation system. At this stage, he emphasized, such a deep level of integration is still not present.

According to him, Armenia and Belarus do not accept the proposed common formula for gas price formation among EAEU countries, which is suggested in the draft strategy for EAEU development until 2025. “There is a formula that is supported by three countries—Russia, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. Its essence is that the approaches to gas pricing could be determined later in negotiations on the formation of the EAEU gas common market. This formula has not yet been accepted by our Armenian and Belarusian partners; they have their own viewpoints. If they could reach an agreement, then there would be no further obstacles on the path to the strategy's approval,” said the Russian president.

He also noted that the issues of gas pricing in the EAEU market could be discussed later, at an expert level, but if Armenia and Belarus maintain their positions, it would probably be reasonable to exclude the gas-related point from the draft strategy. Putin also assured that Russia is interested in expanding cooperation within the Eurasian Economic Union.