A report on Armenia and Eurasian Economic Union

Three organizations originated from the CIS, namely the Collective Security Treaty Organization, the Eurasian Economic Union (alongside subdivisions, the Eurasian Customs Union and the Eurasian Economic Space); and the Union State.

On 21 December 1991, the leaders of eight additional former Soviet Republics (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan) signed the Alma-Ata Protocol which can either be interpreted as expanding the CIS to these states or the proper foundation or foundation date of the CIS, thus bringing the number of participating countries to 11.

1. 🇦🇲 Armenia

The Central Asian states of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan (as well as Belarus) are members of the CIS and participate in several regional organizations that have Russia as a primary mover. Such organizations are the Eurasian Economic Community (later merged with Eurasian Economic Union, which Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are not members of), Collective Security Treaty Organization, and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. The last two groups only became distinct once Uzbekistan withdrew from GUAM and sought membership in EurAsEc and CSTO (which it subsequently withdrew from in 2008 and 2012, respectively).

In the aftermath of the Cold War, several of the former Soviet republics have retained close links with Russia and formed multilateral organizations such as the CIS, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), and the Union State, for economic and military cooperation.

Members of the Unified Team at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona consisted of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.

Similar in concept to the European Union, the Eurasian Union is an economic union established in 2015 including Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and observer members Moldova, Uzbekistan, and Cuba. It is headquartered in Moscow, Russia and Minsk, Belarus. The union promotes economic integration among members and is theoretically open to enlargement to include any country in Europe or Asia.

Serzh Azati Sargsyan (Սերժ Ազատի Սարգսյան, ; born 30 June 1954) is an Armenian politician who served as the third President of Armenia from 2008 to 2018, and twice as the Prime Minister of Armenia from 2007 to 2008 and again from 17 to 23 April 2018, when he was forced to resign in the 2018 Armenian revolution.

In September 2013 and under Sargsyan's direction, Armenia announced its intentions of joining the Eurasian Economic Union with Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia.

In addition to Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, Armenia was also set to sign an Association Agreement with the EU, however, Armenia suddenly broke off negotiations in 2013 to pursue membership in the Eurasian Economic Union. Following a period of brief uncertainty between Brussels and Yerevan, bilateral negotiations resumed on restructuring the relationship between Armenia and the EU. After extensive negotiations, Armenia and the EU finalized the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in November 2017, deepening political and economic ties between them. The new Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement can be seen as a “lite” version of the DCFTA, in which 96% of Armenian goods may enter the EU's single market with zero tariffs. As of 2019, the EU is Armenia's biggest export market. There are several political parties in Armenia which are opposed to Armenia's current membership in the Eurasian Economic Union. Bright Armenia, the Free Democrats and the European Party of Armenia for example, support Armenia's withdrawal from the Eurasian Economic Union and wish to begin renegotiating an Association Agreement including a DCFTA between the EU and Armenia.