The Theory of Integration and

the Eurasian Economic Community

Evgenii. A. Kuznetsov and Gregory Gleason

Prepared for Presentation at the

VII Conference on Promoting Stability In Central Asia

Co-sponsored by the

George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies

and the

Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies under

the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan

June 11-15, 2001

Almaty, Kazakhstan

E.A. Kuznetsov,

Dean of International Studies

Almaty State University

Gregory Gleason

University of New Mexico

Albuquerque, NM 87131

ABSTRACT

The agreement signed in October 2000 by the presidents of Belarus, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan to establish a Eurasian Economic Community (EEC) goes substantially beyond previous measures to support policy integration in Eurasia. The agreement represents the most significant regional effort to harmonize visa, customs, tax, and trade policies since the disintegration of the USSR. The EEC signatory states share the goal of establishing a common economic space in Eurasia, yet the parties have widely differing goals and capabilities. The EEC framework combines both functional integration and constitutional approaches. This article surveys theoretical arguments for integration and applies these to the empirical circumstances of the Eurasian region. The article argues that the EEC combines elements of both functional and constitutional approaches to integration and concludes that prospects for successful policy integration as a result of the EEC are good.