Kazakhstan backs Russia initiative to implement Eurasia integration

• 

The President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev announced his support on Thursday for the initiative made by Russia's President on the implementation of the Greater Eurasia Project.

Earlier in the day, Putin spoke of the need to create a "large Eurasian partnership," the main idea behind which would be to create a common space of equal cooperation for regional organizations.

Tokayev declared at the Eurasian Economic Forum in Bishkek that Putin put forward "a very interesting proposal," explaining, "This refers to the Greater Eurasia megaproject. Indeed, this is a project that deserves a very detailed study and discussion."

He further called the plan by the Russian President to involve others interested in the integration process "absolutely rational".

Made up of five former Soviet republics (Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Russia), the Eurasian Economic Forum is the Eurasian Economic Union's main event. The union was designed to guarantee free movement of goods, services and labor between member states.

It was reported last month that the EAEU's member countries were attempting to remove the US dollar from their mutual settlements. 

Before the war in Ukraine and the wave of sanctions began against Russia, the share of national currencies from mutual EAEU settlements was above 70%.