Post-Soviet Integration Breakthrough. Why the Customs Union Has More Chances Than Its Predecessors

Within a span of several years, post-Soviet integration has evolved from a largely paper project and rhetoric construct — which certain countries exploited to suit their domestic policies — into an important factor influencing economic development. However, its further prospects are unclear. On the one hand, it is the current format of a small group of countries with a clear objective (trade and economic rapprochement) that made the Customs Union a success. On the other hand, a truly big success can only be achieved by crossing the present-day borders — both geographic (for example, by stepping up interaction with China and the European Union) and functional — by handling the movement of production factors, ensuring uniform rules of the game (technical regulation, and access to monopolies’ services) and guaranteeing the coordination of macroeconomic policy.