The Former Prime Minister of Armenia, Tigran Sargsyan will chair the Board of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) as from 1 February next year. The decision was taken at a meeting of the Supreme Council of the EEU held in Kazakhstan on Friday (16 October). Tigran Sargsyan currently serves as the Armenian Ambassador to the United States.
The President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev, President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, President of Kyrgyzstan Almazbek Atambayev and President of Russia Vladimir Putin attended the meeting.
The Kazakh News Agency, Kazinform, reported that President Nazarbayev praised the fruitful character of the negotiations held and the practical importance of the documents inked while opening the session in the resort of Burabay. Kazinform said that the five Presidents "discussed the functioning of the EEU, approved the composition of the EEC Board, amendments to its rules and procedures and agreed on the candidacy of the EEC chairman in 2016. Procedure used to admit new members into the EEU and disaffiliate them was considered as well".
The participants paid utmost attention to the synchronization of work of the EEU and the Silk Road Economic Belt, the agency said.
The heads of the EEU member states also debated the "procedure of interaction with third countries and international organizations. They also decided to launch talks with Israel over a free trade zone".
Russian news agencies also report that Russian Presidential spokesman Dimitry Peskov told reporters that that at the EEU summit the leaders voiced concern over the destabilization of the situation in Afghanistan,
source: commonspace.eu with Kazinform News Agency and other media outlets.
photo: The leaders of the five EEU states at their meeting in Kazakhstan on Friday, 16 October 2015. (Picture courtesy of Kazinform news Agency).