Egypt Asks Russia to Create Free Trade Zone With Eurasian Economic Union

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Egypt has sent a request to Russia to create a free trade zone with the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), Russian Industrial and Trade Minister Denis Manturov said Wednesday.

"An official request from the Egyptian side has been received, today we received a copy of it in order to study it and help them in accordance [with the request] as we are interested,” Manturov said on Rossiya-24 television.

In recent years, Moscow and Cairo have boosted military, trade, security and economic cooperation.

Earlier this week, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev approved a free trade zone agreement between the EEU and Vietnam.

The EEU, which officially came into force January 1, comprises Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia. The bloc aims to achieve the free flow of goods, services, capital and labor across its member states, with provisions for a greater integration in the future.

sputniknews.com