Meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council

List of the heads of delegations participating in the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council meeting:

Group photo of the heads of delegations participating in the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council meeting

Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Karen Karapetyan

Prime Minister of the Republic of Belarus Andrei Kobyakov

Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan Bakytzhan Sagintayev

Prime Minister of the Kyrgyz Republic Sooronbai Jeenbekov

Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev

Chairman of the Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission Tigran Sargsyan

Documents signed following the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council meeting:

– Eurasian Intergovernmental Council Directive on the Action Plan (Roadmap) to Eliminate Exemptions and Restrictions on the Domestic Market of the Eurasian Economic Union.

– Eurasian Intergovernmental Council Decision on Organising Joint Research and Development Work in the Agro-Industrial Complex of the Eurasian Economic Union Member States.

– Eurasian Intergovernmental Council Directive on Ensuring the Holding of National Population Censuses during the 2020 Round in the Eurasian Economic Union Member States.

– Eurasian Intergovernmental Council Directive on the Eurasian Economic Commission’s Annual Report on Monitoring the Assessment of the Regulatory Effect of the Eurasian Economic Commission’s Draft Decisions in 2016.

– Agreement on the procedure for the voluntary harmonisation of specific subsidies for industrial goods by the Eurasian Economic Union member states and the Eurasian Economic Commission and the conduct of proceedings by the Eurasian Economic Commission on the provision of specific subsidies by the Eurasian Economic Union member states.

– Eurasian Intergovernmental Council Instruction on Developing the One-Stop Shop Mechanism in Regulating Foreign Economic Activity in the Eurasian Economic Union Member States.

– Eurasian Intergovernmental Council Directive on the Time and Place of the Next Eurasian Intergovernmental Council Meeting.




Greetings to the 8th Nevsky International Ecological Congress

Dear friends,

Welcome to the Nevsky International Ecological Congress, which has convened in St Petersburg for the eighth time.

Clean air, fresh water, green forests and meadows, and quality foods are what can keep us and future generations healthy. Today you will discuss nature conservation, improving the environment in cities and towns and reducing the negative impact of industry on the environment. I hope that the discussions will, as always, be straightforward and substantive.

Many countries have embraced green development not as a fashion, but as a fact of life and a vital condition for sustainable and safe economic growth and prosperity. It is important that the main theme of your congress this year is environmental education. We must promote awareness of the global challenges and threats of pollution not just with young people but also everyone on the planet, especially businesspeople and leaders at all levels who make decisions and are responsible for their environmental consequences.

I am sure that your congress will be one of the most important events in this Year of the Environment.

I wish you interesting discussions and productive work that will culminate in the formulation of new environmental protection concepts and initiatives.

Dmitry Medvedev




Dmitry Medvedev’s news conference following the BSEC meeting

The Prime Minister answered questions from Russian media.

Excerpts from the transcript:

A visit to Russia’s Consulate-General in Istanbul

Dmitry Medvedev: Russian Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Turkey Andrei Karlov was killed in Ankara on 19 December 2016. He was shot in the presence of many people, and the photographs of his murder spread around the world within minutes.

Andrei Karlov was a career diplomat from a family of diplomats. He upheld the interests of his country faithfully and courageously, doing his best to promote ties with Turkey at a difficult period in our bilateral relations.

Dmitry Medvedev holds a news conference

Today, a memorial plaque to Hero of the Russian Federation Andrei Karlov has been unveiled in the Russian Consulate General in Istanbul, in the ambassadorial gallery memorialising renowned Russian diplomats.

The murder of a diplomat whose task is to develop bilateral relations is a heinous crime. The duty of a diplomat, his service, is special, and Andrei Karlov gave his all to it. We will never forget this.

Question: What concrete results did the BSEC meeting yield?

Dmitry Medvedev: Today its members demonstrated their desire to develop economic cooperation in the Black Sea area. The members of the Organisation of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation include more than just the countries that have access to the Black Sea because the development of many border countries depends on the economic progress of the Black Sea area.

We discussed what was done in the past 25 years and how best to use BSEC instruments. We have a bank and Russia has a meaningful share in it. Dozens of projects have been funded but there could have been more. This depends on the initiative of the BSEC member states.

We have started financing project activities and allocated the first sums for such projects. We would like to hope that other countries will follow suit.

There are many transnational projects for Black Sea cooperation, for instance, the so-called Ring Road. If we carry out this project, perhaps with the participation of a number of countries outside the region, it would be useful for the entire Black Sea area.

Question: Today the Ukrainian representative had some very tough words. He said the differences between Russia and other members on the status of Crimea are actually blocking the work of BSEC. Is this really so and how will this affect Russia’s participation in the work of BSEC under the Ukrainian chairmanship?

Dmitry Medvedev: I think our Ukrainian colleague made his point, so to speak. He had instructions from the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry and read them from a  piece of paper in Ukrainian. However, this has not changed our position on Crimea in any way, which is based on the will of the citizens of Crimea and the changes made to the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

As for the Ukrainian chairmanship, if the goal of it is to develop economic relations, we are open to this. Ukraine was hardest hit by the destruction of relations with the Russian Federation and other members of the Eurasian Economic Union, because these relations are significantly linked with us in one way or another.

If they want to promote cooperation in the Black Sea area, we are open to this; if they don’t want to, that’s up to them. The Ring Road project would certainly be useful for all states, including Ukraine, but such projects cannot be carried out without the consent of all states.

We will continue working under the Ukrainian chairmanship and in other periods. We believe this organisation does useful work.

Question: Today a declaration on lifting reciprocal trade restrictions was adopted with Turkey. When will the corresponding decision by the Government follow, and what commodity groups will it concern?

Dmitry Medvedev: The decision will follow immediately, according to Government regulations. My colleagues will prepare amendments to certain governmental acts and I will sign them. We have reached an agreement with Turkey: we will be taking reciprocal steps because certain restrictions existed on Turkey’s end as well.

As for commodity groups, it’s mostly fruit and vegetables, except tomatoes, as we have maintained our position in view of the investments that we have made in the industry and which, we believe, should not be wasted. This concerns restrictions on using labour and the so-called sectoral restrictions on doing business along different lines, including construction and some others. Governmental acts will be adopted along all these lines. We expect symmetrical decisions on certain items on Turkey’s part.

Question: How do you assess the security situation at Turkish resorts?

Dmitry Medvedev: The security situation at Turkish resorts depends on decisions adopted by Turkey because tourist safety is completely the responsibility of the host country and the companies involved. However, we cannot turn a blind eye to this issue. We have prepared a special document entitled “Recommendations for Our Turkish Partners” which could be used to guarantee the necessary level of safety for tourists.

Our Turkish partners received these recommendations with gratitude and are trying to follow them. We proceed from the assumption that, within the bounds of the agreements reached, Turkish authorities will do their best to provide security for the large number of Russian tourists arriving in Turkey for summer holidays. 

Question: Construction of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline has begun. What are the prospects of this project? How is the process of coordinating the extension of Turkish Stream through Europe going?

Dmitry Medvedev: This is an ambitious infrastructure project, which promotes the development of our country, Turkey and the whole of Europe. Turkish Stream did not come out of nowhere: it is the realisation of previously adopted ideas and existing projects, on the one hand, and the result of the European Union’s refusal to implement the South Stream project, on the other hand. We think the decision went beyond economic considerations and primarily affected European countries themselves. But that project was shuttered, and now we are working on Turkish Stream. We began to lay the underwater part of the pipeline, which will have a length of almost 1,000 kilometres. The surface section of about 200 kilometres will be built in Turkey.

In total the pipeline will consist of two lines, with the first to completely focus on the Turkish market and the second to supply gas to European states.

Through negotiations with a number of European countries (including Greece and Bulgaria), we are determining the entry point in Europe. There are different proposals.

First of all, when making such decisions, we should analyse economic factors, as the gas pipeline is not a political but purely economic project. And after that, the capabilities of other European countries will be added in.

Ultimately, the implementation of these plans on the European continent, in EU countries, depends on decisions to be taken by European countries. We are not going to impose on anyone. We believe this is an interesting, mutually beneficial project that requires necessary decisions to be taken. Based on these factors, consultations are underway regarding which countries will participate in supplies as part of the second line of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline. 




Russia’s accession to the OECD Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting

The Convention is designed to combat schemes for withdrawing profits from Russia and will make it possible to coordinate efforts to implement the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s Plan to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting by approving, on a multilateral basis, changes to the mechanism for enforcing existing agreements on avoidance of double taxation, without the need to hold bilateral talks on each such agreement separately.

Reference

Submitted by the Ministry of Finance.

The Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting of 24 November 2016 was developed by the countries that are members of an Ad Hoc Group of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development as part of implementing the Plan to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (hereinafter, Convention, OECD, and BEPS Plan, respectively). The Convention has been open for signing since 31 December 2016.

The Convention is designed to prevent the withdrawal of profits from Russia and will make it possible to coordinate efforts to implement the BEPS Plan by approving, on a multilateral basis, changes regarding the mechanism for enforcing existing agreements on avoidance of double taxation, without the need to hold separate bilateral talks on each such agreement.

The signed directive adopted the Foreign Ministry proposal to sign the Convention, which had been duly coordinated with the Foreign Ministry, the Ministry of Economic Development, the Ministry of Justice, and the Federal Taxation Service of Russia.

The Convention will apply to 63 agreements on avoidance of double taxation concluded by the Russian Federation with foreign states. The only exception will be agreements with countries that are not members of the OECD Ad Hoc Group to develop the Convention, as well as agreements with Sweden and Japan as talks are underway to sign new agreements with these countries based on the provisions of the Convention.

In accordance with the Federal Law on International Treaties of the Russian Federation, the Convention is subject to ratification, as it contains rules that are different from those stipulated by Russian law.

The Convention is consistent with the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union and other international treaties of the Russian Federation.




Dmitry Medvedev holds a news conference

The Prime Minister answered questions from Russian media.

Excerpts from the transcript:

A visit to Russia’s Consulate-General in Istanbul

Dmitry Medvedev: Russian Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Turkey Andrei Karlov was killed in Ankara on 19 December 2016. He was shot in the presence of many people, and the photographs of his murder spread around the world within minutes.

Andrei Karlov was a career diplomat from a family of diplomats. He upheld the interests of his country faithfully and courageously, doing his best to promote ties with Turkey at a difficult period in our bilateral relations.

Dmitry Medvedev holds a news conference

Today, a memorial plaque to Hero of the Russian Federation Andrei Karlov has been unveiled in the Russian Consulate General in Istanbul, in the ambassadorial gallery memorialising renowned Russian diplomats.

The murder of a diplomat whose task is to develop bilateral relations is a heinous crime. The duty of a diplomat, his service, is special, and Andrei Karlov gave his all to it. We will never forget this.

More to be posted soon…