History of Formation of the SES in the Period of 2003-2012

Abstract

The paper describes the process of creating the Single Economic Space. The reasons for creating this association are disclosed and analyzed. It is said that the attempts to create the Single Economic Space were carried out in the 1990s as well. It is emphasized that it was not achieved during that period due to certain reasons. The author stresses that in the early 2000s when the new government, headed by V. Putin, came to power in Russia, the Russian Federation began to conduct two foreign policy lines in the post-Soviet space: new, Eurasian and old, non-Eurasian one. The first lies in the project to create effective integration scheme in the former Soviet Union without Ukraine, and the second was to engage Ukraine in all possible ways to integrate with Russia and other Russia’s allies in the region. The project of the latest format should have become the SES.

Particular attention in the paper is paid to the place and role of Ukraine in the signing of the Agreement on the creation of the SES. It is said that Ukraine was one of the first with Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan to begin the negotiation process on the SES. Attention is drawn to the fact that in September 2003, during the presidency of Leonid Kuchma, Ukraine signed the Agreement on the formation of the SES. It is also said that the Orange Revolution seriously influenced Ukraine’s participation in that pro-Russian integration project. Great attention is paid to the fact that, during the presidency of V. Yushchenko at the end of 2005, Ukraine rejected the SES negotiations. The reasons for Ukraine’s refusal to participate in that project are analyzed in details.

Also, attention is paid to the fact that Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan decided to continue integration and create a fully-fledged SES without Ukraine. The author emphasizes that even the victory of pro-Russian candidate Yanukovych in presidential elections in 2010 did not affect Ukraine’s desire to revert to the negotiation process. It is noted that despite the attempts of some key members of Viktor Yanukovych team, (Prime Minister M. Azarov), Ukraine did not return to that post-Soviet integration project. The key events in the issue of the SES creation are presented chronologically. The main stages of creation and formation of the Single Economic Space of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan are also described.