What is the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU)?

About Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) 

• It is an international economic union and free trade zone comprising countries locatedin central and northern Asia and Eastern Europe.
• It was established by the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union signed on May 29, 2014, in Astana.
• Member countries include Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan.
• The EAEU is being created to comprehensively upgrade, raise the competitiveness of and cooperation between the national economies, and promote stable development in order to raise the living standards of the nations of the Member-States.
• The EAEU provides for free movement of goods, services, capital and labor, pursues coordinated, harmonized, and single policyin the sectors determined by the Treaty and international agreements within the Union.
• Structure:
  • The Supreme Eurasian Economic Council is the highest body of the EAEU, which consists of the heads of the Union’s member states. 
  • The Eurasian Economic Commission,based in Moscow, is the permanent supranational regulatory body of the union. The main purpose of the Commission is to ensure the functioning and development of the EAEU and developing proposals for the further development of integration.
  • The Court of the EAEU,based in Minsk,serves as the judicial body.
• Unlike the European Commission, the Eurasian Economic Commission’s power is limited.
• Member states disagreeing with its judgements can appeal to other bodies, and the Commission has no power to bring a member state before the Court in a case of non-compliance.
• Disputes are often resolved bilaterally rather than via EEU institutions.
• Unlike the European Union (EU), the EAEU does not share a common currency.

Q1: What are Free Trade Agreements?

It is an agreement between two or more countries where the countries agree on certain obligations that affect trade in goods and services, and protections for investors and intellectual property rights, among other topics.

Source: India seriously considering FTA with Eurasian Economic Union: Belarus Foreign Minister