Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:

Vladimir Putin: Colleagues, Mr Myasnikovich, Mr Massimov, friends, welcome to Moscow! I believe this is a very special occasion that we have gathered here for today. You all have an opportunity to meet and discuss the problems and talk about new opportunities that are starting to emerge now that the Customs Union has been established and the customs borders have been eliminated. I would like to stress again that it is a turning point in the history of our states that will make trade and economic activities easier, facilitate collaboration between our states, and make our states and economies more competitive.

This meeting is a good opportunity for us to discuss how practical steps are being realised at the moment, to talk about the prospects for the next six months with respect to the decision to form a common economic space on January 1, 2012. Welcome again! I am certain the meeting will be very efficient and productive. Please.

Mikhail Myasnikovich: Thank you. Mr Putin, Mr Massimov, first I would like to thank

you as heads of government for the financial support from the anti-crisis fund. We will be very careful with the money. I’ve prepared a report on the work we have done so far, which I will submit to you later today. Mr Kudrin has been very thorough about every point so I hope everything goes well. I would like to thank you again for opening up the actual borders beginning July 1. The most important task now is to put all our efforts into the transition to a common economic space beginning January 1, 2012. There is a specific action plan and I think we must make sure we achieve this goal, first of all, by creating equal conditions for the economic entities. Thank you.

Karim Massimov: Mr Putin, Mr Myasnikovich, I believe today’s meeting is perhaps even more important than a general meeting of the governments because it is a meeting of the economic entities that will benefit from the rules and conditions we have worked on for the past two years. I should mention that it was not easy for Kazakh businesses to come to terms with it. There were arguments and talks in Kazakhstan. But now that we see a real result and that the companies have an opportunity to operate in the common market with the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus these questions are a thing of the past. I think now it is important for our governments to keep up the pace and promote the resolutions that were made… Let me thank you again, Mr Putin… It all started with a similar meeting on June 9, 2005.  I remember it very well.

We must prepare very well for January 1, 2012. We are entering a completely new legal framework that we are not mentally prepared for yet. We must prepare ourselves and make sure businesses are ready, especially when it comes to decision-making, because we transferred many functions to the supranational level for relevant decisions to be taken.