EEC Council approves creation of group to assess free trade agreement with Jordan

MOSCOW. Nov 3 (Interfax) - The Council of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) approved the formation of a joint research group on Tuesday to study the feasibility of concluding a free trade agreement between the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and Jordan, according to the commission's trade division.

"The bulk of trade turnover between our countries consists of food products and agricultural raw materials, metals, timber, textile products and chemical industry products. To date, the trade potential has not been fully realized. Reducing duties could allow for a substantial increase in supplies in both directions," EEC Trade Minister Andrei Slepnev was quoted as saying.

On the EAEU side, the group will be formed from candidates proposed by the union's member states, as well as EEC representatives.

The formation of a joint group to study the feasibility of a free trade zone (FTA) between the EAEU and Jordan was announced in June this year following a meeting between Slepnev and Jordanian Industry, Trade and Supply Minister Yarub Al-Qudah. "We view Jordan as one of the promising partners in the region, and there are good prospects for developing trade and economic cooperation between the EAEU and Jordan," Slepnev said at the time.