Kazakh products have problems reaching Russian, Belarusian markets - Nazarbayev
ASTANA. Oct 24 (Interfax) - Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev believes domestic manufacturers have problems with the access of their products to the Russian and Belarusian markets.
"There are serious problems with the access of our products to the markets of Russia and Belarus, which are using non-tariff barriers," he said at the meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council held at the level of the heads of governments in Minsk on Thursday.
Nazarbayev also said that "free movement of goods has toughened the competition conditions for Kazakh manufacturers with enterprises from the Customs Union and the Eurasian economic space."
"Kazakhstan's import from the countries of the Eurasian economic space increased from 32% in 2009 to 40% in 2012," he said.
In addition, Nazarbayev said that Kazakh meat products have "zero chance" of getting onto Russian and Belarusian markets. "Russia needs norms that our certificates don't have," he said.
"Businessmen and other participants in customs activities criticize the Customs Code the most," Nazarbayev said.
At the same time, he pointed out "the need to liberalize the code and ease customs procedures on the external borders of the Customs Union."
Nazarbayev also reiterated that the activities of the Eurasian Economic Commission should be aimed at eliminating disproportions and barriers in the mutual trade of the countries of the Customs Union.
