Muntiyan: Memorandum between Ukraine and Customs Union to grant observer status to Kyiv could be signed in Astana on May 29
Government Commissioner for Cooperation with Russia, the CIS, the Eurasian Economic Community and Other Regional Unions Valeriy Muntiyan has predicted that a memorandum between Ukraine and the countries of the Customs Union on enhanced cooperation, which foresees the granting of observer status to Kyiv, could be signed in Astana on May 29.
Muntiyan said during a video linkup between Moscow, Astana and Kyiv on "Eurasian Integration. Current Agenda" on Monday that the Ukrainian side had prepared a draft memorandum and had already sent it to all governments of the Customs Union countries.
"I think that on May 29 in Astana, the heads of state will sign this memorandum on deepening cooperation and integration with the countries of the Customs Union and the Common Economic Space. Or there could be maybe a second option – the instruction will be given to sign this memorandum directly to the Eurasian Economic Commission, Mr. [Head of the Eurasian Economic Commission Viktor] Khristenko and our Prime Minister Mykola Azarov," he said.
As reported, a meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council is to be held in Astana (Kazakhstan) on May 28-29. Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych is expected to leave for Astana.
On May 22, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved a draft memorandum with the Customs Union on granting Ukraine observer status in the union. According to Azarov, Ukraine wants to cooperate with the Customs Union in the 3+1 format and a governmental working group has currently been created to consider the union's regulatory documents.
On April 23, Azarov said that Ukraine had managed to reach an important agreement on its observer status in the Customs Union, which it could officially receive at a meeting with the heads of the union in late May in Astana.
At the same time, Deputy Head of Russia's Economic Development Ministry Alexei Likhachev said that the issue had not been approved yet and that talks with the Ukrainian side were continuing with both the Customs Union member states and the Council of the Eurasian Economic Commission.
