Russian language is our strength, our competitive advantage: PM Massimov

Speaking in Russian within the Customs Union is our advantage, Kazakhstan’s Prime Minister Karim Massimov said when speaking at the Customs Union forum of Heads of Government in Moscow July 12. “In Kazakhstan the idea of the Customs Union was not fully understood at the initial stage. I want to emphasize that accession into the Customs Union does not mean giving up independence. The three states – Kazakhstan, Belarus and Russia – remain sovereign states. (…) Kazakh is the state language of Kazakhstan, but we will be using Russian when doing business with Russia and Belarus. The language is our strength, our competitive advantage. It was a sensitive issue inside Kazakhstan (…)”, the Prime Minister said. “We hope to do our best to showcase opportunities and advantages the to-be Common Economic Space may bring about", he emphasized. The Customs Union between Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus came into existence on January 1, 2010 to boost trade and investment. According to the statement made at the press-conference in Minsk, the Customs Union was formed on the WTO principles.