Shuvalov: “If Belarus doesn’t accept Customs Union’s terms, we’ll preserve customs control”

Russia plans to preserve the customs control on the Belarusian border after July 1 if the country doesn’t join the Customs Union on general terms.

It was stated by Russian deputy prime minister Igor Shuvalov in St Petersburg on Thursday, Interfax reports.

“If Belarus doesn’t adopt the Customs Code, we will have to preserve the customs control. If the Customs Union runs in full from July 1, the border will become transparent,” he said.

Shuvalov also said all documents for launching the Customs Union of Russia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus were prepared. “The nearest session of the inter-state council of the EurAsEC will determine the format of the Union, Russia and Kazakhstan, or Russia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus,” the deputy PM added.

He noted that the Union’s normative documents do not contradict the norms of the European Union and the World Trade Organization (WTO). “We confirm today that there are no contradictions with EU and WTO’s statutory documents,” Shuvalov said.