Imperatives of the Economic Integration of the Eurasian Economic Union Countries

Abstract

The development of integration of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) countries is limited by the system of imperatives that includes challenges and threats to the interests and existence of the integration block and its members. The article identifies challenges to the development of the EAEU: liberal globalization, transition to the sixth technological order, global digital transformation, challenges associated with the emergence of new development centers and a new system of international redistribution of economic growth factors. It was established that external and internal challenges that do not receive well-timed and adequate answers are transformed into a system of threats. The paper provides a list of external threats to the Eurasian integration: threats, coming from western “partners” aimed at deterring and preventing integration processes in the EAEU, threats of a military nature, as well as threats of forming alternative integration projects. The author presents the analysis of internal threats: ethnic conflicts, changing foreign policies of the participating countries, conflicts of economic and political interests, problems of the financial and payment systems, limited mutual trade and investment relations, insufficient development of the transport infrastructure, the threat of “erosion” of a single economic and transit space of EAEU if the Unit is constructed on terms of “continental” integration. It is concluded that it is necessary to counteract the listed threats with measures of an economic, military-political or other nature.