Transition to rubles in EAEU customs settlement to apply to Russia, Belarus, other countries to keep using dollars - Kazakhstan

NUR-SULTAN. March 18 (Interfax) - The transition to Russian rubles while calculating and distributing import customs duties in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) will apply to Russia and Belarus, the remaining three member states will continue using the United States dollars, the press service for the Kazakh government said.

The treaty on the EAEU envisages the member states' obligation to collect and mutually allocate import customs duties to each other's' budgets. This mechanism is unified in every member state and comprises the following main stages: the collection of import duties on goods received from third countries in national currencies, the splitting of the received amounts of import dues in accordance with established coefficients, the conversion of these amounts to U.S. dollars, and their further allocation to the EAEU member states.

In light of the sanctions imposed, the member states cannot allocate these import customs duties in U.S. dollars to the Russian Federation and Belarus.

At the same time, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan will be receiving import customs duties as before, it said.

Meanwhile, Russian Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov said earlier that the member countries of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) have agreed on a phased transition in customs settlements to national currencies, with the majority of settlements to be rendered in rubles.

The respective countries discussed the issue during a meeting of the Council of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) on Thursday.

"Previously, all this occurred in a foreign currency, and we have currently agreed on a phased transition to settlements in national currencies," Reshetnikov said on the Rossiya 24 channel.

"Naturally, it is very important for Russia to receive and split the bulk of the duty, and that the settlements be in rubles, meaning that in this way, we have begun to form a single ruble zone," Reshetnikov added.