On April 11, 2017, three months and a half after all the other EAEU members had signed the new Customs Code, the Republic of Belarus also signed this document.
On December 26, 2016, the leaders of EAEU states (Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia and Kazakhstan) signed the Customs Code at the meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council in Saint Petersburg. Alyaksandr Lukashenka did not come to the meeting.
Later, on February 3, Alyaksandr Lukashenka informed that he had not signed the Customs Code as many agreements in this area did not work. Prior to that, he had instructed Belarusian officers to explore the matter to be certain that signing of the Code would not threaten national interests. According to President Lukashenko, there was a decline in trade turnover by 40% in 2015 and additionally by 18% in 2016. (This statement was made by the Belarusian leader during the gas dispute between Belarus and Russia and tension increase with Rosselhoznadzor.)
President A. Lukashenka signed the decree approving the agreement on EAEU Customs Code and empowered the State Customs Committee to conduct negotiations on it.
EAEU press service confirmed on April 12 that Belarus had signed EAEU Customs Code, providing no further details on that.
“However, the Code has not come into effect yet. As it is an international agreement, it becomes effective on its own date after being ratified by all the parties”, told the Director of the Department of Customs legislation and practice of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) Dmitry Nekrasov. “EAEU Customs Code is most likely to come into force on January 1, 2018”.
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Background information. EAEU is an international economic union created within the framework of the Customs Union and the Single Economic Space effective since January 1, 2015. EAEU comprises Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
Sources: rzd-partner.ru, sputnik.by, провэд.рф