Massimov announces working group to simplify passport control within Customs Union

Kazakhstan’s Prime Minister Karim Massimov has announced establishing a special working group to simplify passport control within the Customs Union of Kazakhstan, Russia and Belarus, a Tengrinews.kz correspondent reports from Minsk, Belarus. This was announced by him at a joint press-conference with his Russian and Belarus counterparts, Mr. Vladimir Putin and Mr. Mikhail Myasnikovich following a sitting of the EurAsEC interstate council. “The Customs Union has truly established itself as an entity and bringing forth impressive indicators. An example is the trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Belarus standing at USD 1 billion, which twice exceeds the indicator before the Customs Union”, Karim Massimov said. He also emphasized that starting from July 1, 2011, customs borders between Kazakhstan and Russia will be removed. Head of the Russian Government Vladimir Putin commented on the idea of simplifying passport control within the Customs Union. “If the Governments have agreed on free trade within the CU, it’s reasonable to simplify procedures for residents”, he said. 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. The Interstate Council of the Eurasian Economic Community, the highest body of the customs union between Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan, was meeting yesterday in Minsk.