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The article ”Putin’s Eurasian
Economic Union starts in 2015 with curtailed ambitions” by Michael Birnbaum,
seen in The Washington Post explains details about the economic alliance that
would center at the Kremlin and what is going on with that now. This article
begins by explain that originally the Eurasian Economic Union was to be a “grand
alliance to rival the European Union” and it would include numerous ex- Soviet
Union nations, all the way from Ukraine to Belarus and Kazakhstan. Originally
this alliance would have started at the beginning of this new year however now
with all the conflicts in Ukraine with Russia it has been pushed back.
Additionally, because of Russia’s treatment of Ukraine and the situation in
Crimea leaders of Belarus and Kazakhstan have stated that they have friendly
relations with all countries and do not wish to make an alliance that will jeopardize
those relations. Putin hoped that with this Eurasian Economic Union he could
restore some of the former economic stability and glory that that region of the
world once had. However, neighboring nations are skeptical of giving up their sovereignty
to the Kremlin as European Union members have given some of their sovereignty
to Brussels. Brussels is known as the administrative capital of the European
Union and Putin had hopes that Moscow would be the same for the Eurasian
Economic Union.
Do you think that Eurasia would be better off with these new changes, or would keeping the current system be better?
ReplyDeleteI am really skeptical about the ideas that are presented by Putin's plan for a Eurasian Economic Union. We are moving towards a more globalized economy, where the interdependence on fellow nations is ever so present. However, giving up states individual sovereignty towards a greater union could be detrimental to certain states. Just take a look at the Eurozone crash of the recent decade. Some nations were not able to pull their own weight and in turn lead to instability in the Union. I also think that the political issues related to Crimea play an enormous role in these decisions.
Personally I think this Eurasian Economic Union would only benefit Russia as they begin to struggle economically. I do not believe that it would be in the other countries best interest to ally itself financially with a nation that is currently struggling. That being said Ukraine also recently took a big hit financially so maybe there is merit in saying if they all came together it would help those struggling nations. But also I am looking at it from the point of view that Putin is trying to put the power in the Kremlin's hands and that may not be best for the other nations.
ReplyDeleteThis is an interesting topic in that it may signify a trend throughout the world in which countries begin to give up some sovereignty in order to achieve more stability and to counter the gains of rival countries and organizations. The Eurasian Economic Union is a direct reaction and counter to the EU and thus, much like during the Cold War, rivals are being pulled into opposite camps, although this time it is much more formal. While there were NATO and the Warsaw Pact during the Cold War, these were mainly military treaties that didn't force countries to give up sovereignty necessarily. This is a much more formal organization that is binding these countries much closer together. My biggest concern would be whether or not two competing unions of sovereign states would be willing to trade with one another and would really be friendly. In many regards, I am seeing the continuation of the Cold War in a new context through Putin's actions.
ReplyDeleteThis is an especially interesting topic seeing as the Russian economy has been increasingly struggle, and the value of the Ruble is falling. Do you think it is ever worth giving up sovereignty in order to establish greater global ties for ecconomic purposes? While the Eurozone has suffered a crisis, one could argue that if it had not been for their organizations many countries like Greece would not have been able to handle their financial crisis. I find this topic increasingly interesting due to the historical relationship of these Eurasian countries. This may make people skeptical of Putin's intentions due to the fact that these are ex-Soviet countries. This can be seen as an attempt to regain power and sovereignty lost since the Cold War. Do you think Putin is more interested in creating an economic unit to rival the or do you think he is interested in gaining power by having countries give up their sovereignty to Moscow?
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Tim said, agreements like this have the potential to have disastrous effects on small countries in the region who have neither the political nor economic capabilities of really doing anything about anything - they are at the mercy of the larger countries (Russia/China). I am skeptical of any possibility of Russian altruism in forming this agreement.
ReplyDeletePutin's goals and desires do seem to be skeptical especial due to the past relations that the countries in this Eurasian Economic Union have. There is also added skepticism due to Russia's recent aggression and actions. These factors combined together may point to a desire to ignite past intentions and to possibly bring back past Cold War issues globally.
ReplyDelete