Vladimir Putin And The World Of Tomorrow

This is essential reading for anyone who wants a glimpse into what might be our future according to current Russian PM Vladimir Putin, whose views about a multipolar balance of power are hardly secret. It was published in October to little fanfare, as most important documents usually are. To quote:

A crucial integration project, the Common Economic Space of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan (CES), will kick off on January 1, 2012. This project is, without exaggeration, a historic milestone for all three countries and for the broader post-Soviet space.

The road to this milestone was difficult and often torturous. It began two decades ago when the Commonwealth of Independent States was established after the Soviet Union’s collapse. To all intents and purposes, the selected model helped preserve the myriad of ties, both of civilisation and culture, which unite our peoples and also forged links in production, the economy and in other vital areas essential for our lives.

There are different views on how efficient the CIS is, and disputes over its internal problems and failed hopes have the potential to run and run. But it is difficult to argue with the fact that the commonwealth remains an irreplaceable mechanism that helps bring our positions closer together and enables us to elaborate a common view on key issues facing our region, in addition to the tangible benefits it affords its members.

Moreover, the CIS experience enabled us to launch a many-tiered, multi-speed integration process in the post-Soviet space, and to set up much needed institutions such as the Union State of Russia and Belarus, the Collective Security Treaty Organisation, the Eurasian Economic Community, the Customs Union and finally the Common Economic Space.

It is worth mentioning that these integration processes received a fresh impetus during the global financial crisis, as it forced states to seek new resources for economic growth. We reached a point at which it became necessary to fundamentally modernise the principles of our partnership both within the CIS and in other regional associations. We focused above all on developing trade and production ties.

In fact, we are making integration a comprehensible, sustainable, and long-term project, attractive to both individuals and businesses, that operates independently from fluctuations in the current political environment or any other circumstances.