Russia takes first place in the CIS in terms of the number of attracted labor migrants. Their main flow historically comes from the Commonwealth member states (according to some data, more than 9 million citizens of CIS countries entered the territory of the Russian Federation last year), therefore cooperation in the sphere of migration is one of our priorities. Director of the First Department of the CIS countries of the Russian Foreign Ministry Mikael Agasandyan said.
According to him, the Russian Federation is open to citizens of other countries, who strictly observe the laws and regulations adopted in Russia, respect local traditions and culture.
«There is a visa-free regime in the CIS (with the exception of Turkmenistan) ... Currently, negotiations on either tightening or, conversely, easing the current entry regime are not being conducted at the association’s site,» Mikael Agasandyan added.
He also touched upon the topic of the CSTO.
«The Russian Federation has been consistently making efforts to develop the CSTO’s potential as an effective structure responsible for maintaining stability not only in the member states, but also in the vast Eurasian space. The organization has repeatedly proven its relevance, including during the events two years ago in Kazakhstan, when the peacekeeping contingents of the association helped stabilize the domestic political situation in a matter of days.
Together with our allies, we aim to expand the association’s partnership ties, primarily with friendly regional structures — the CIS and the SCO. We see interest in the work of the CSTO from a number of Eurasian countries that share the opinion on the importance of creating a single, indivisible and reliable security space on the continent,» the representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
In his opinion, the EAEU is an actively developing organization, so the search for new trade partners is a completely natural process. The Union’s geography is gradually expanding, as it is open to dialogue and cooperation with states that share its fundamental principles, which include respect for sovereignty, equality and mutual benefit.
