Smailov offered EEC to digitalize EAEU transport infrastructure
First Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan - Minister of Finance Alikhan Smailov took part in a regular meeting of the Council of the Eurasian Economic Commission, held in Yerevan, the Ministry of Finance informs.
The EEC Council members discussed the functioning of domestic markets, international cooperation, customs and technical regulation, the digital agenda of the EAEU, and the application of sanitary and phytosanitary measures.
Information provided by the Eurasian Economic Commission on the progress in eliminating exemptions, restrictions and barriers in the EAEU domestic market that impede the creation of a single market for goods and services was heard.
The Procedure for the interaction of centers of competence of the EAEU and EEC member states within the framework of the implementation of the EAEU digital agenda was approved.
The agenda of the next meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council, which is scheduled to be held on October 25 this year in Moscow, has been approved.
The EEC Council ordered the preparation of a document defining approaches to the development of trade and economic cooperation with the main partners of the EAEU for the medium term.
A number of decisions were made to temporarily reduce the import customs duty on certain types of raw materials and spare parts.
Also Alikhan Smailov participated in the international forum “Transit potential of the Eurasian continent” in Yerevan and raised the problematic issues of transit in the EAEU.
“Firstly, this is a significant depreciation of the transport infrastructure from 40 to 100 percent, which, of course, affects the quality of roads, low logistics efficiency, leads to more expensive transportation and prices for goods. Secondly, this is a high degree of bureaucratization and the slow introduction of modern technologies, digitalization”, A. Smailov noted.
According to him, Kazakhstan together with the Russian Federation introduced navigation seals at the borders in a pilot format, but now plans are to introduce it in a multilateral format in the EAEU countries, which will increase transit between them.
“In addition, this will solve the problem of transit of sanctioned goods through the territory of the Russian Federation”, he added.
In conclusion, the First Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan - Minister of Finance, drawing his colleagues' attention to the lack of coordination on the creation of common EAEU logistics corridors, suggested the Eurasian Economic Commission to work out the issue of digitizing the EAEU transport infrastructure.
