EAEU Leaders Report Growth, Sign Cooperation Deals at Kyrgyzstan Meeting
CHOLPON-ATA, Kyrgyzstan — Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin told a meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council that the bloc’s main economic indicators, including GDP, rose in the first half of 2026 despite external pressures. Heads of government from the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) member states also signed a package of documents at the gathering, which was held in the Kyrgyz resort town on August 7.
According to Mishustin, from January to May, real gross domestic product grew, along with industrial production, agriculture, and retail trade. Mutual trade is also increasing. He said the EAEU countries are working together to strengthen Eurasian integration and are carrying out tasks set by their heads of state.
Mishustin also said countries around the world increasingly value the predictability and reliability demonstrated by the EAEU. He described expanding external cooperation as one of the association’s priorities, adding that many countries are "opting for reliability and predictability." He expressed expectation that the number of the EAEU’s preferential trade partners will increase and that Russia will provide necessary support for this.
The Russian prime minister further proposed tasking the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) with preparing a draft plan for implementing the previously adopted strategy for the joint scientific and technical development of the EAEU countries. He identified "further strengthening of industrial cooperation" as a priority, recalling that at the Innoprom event in Yekaterinburg, EAEU nations agreed on the importance of pooling capacities, raw material bases, and workforce potential to fully unlock industrial capabilities. They also agreed to make more active use of the existing supranational mechanism for supporting cooperation and to establish an exchange of advanced technologies and practices.
On integration projects, Mishustin said Russia is interested in projects with EAEU member states that involve localization. "You spoke about industrial cooperation and new projects. Let me wholeheartedly support this as we have the funds," he said. However, he noted that such projects are difficult to find. "We need to find such projects involving localization in Kyrgyzstan or other countries. Russia is open to this, we are looking for them. I am personally ready to meet with <…> colleagues to ensure there are as many integration-oriented projects as possible," he said. He also mentioned interest in areas such as logistics, transport, and digitalization, especially in the industrial sector.
Following the 47th meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council, heads of government signed a package of documents, including three agreements: one on e-commerce within the EAEU, one on the mutual recognition of academic rank certificates, and one on the mutual admission of brokers and dealers to exchange trading. The package also included directives regarding the annual report on the state of competition in global markets and the suppression of competition rule violations, as well as the EEC’s report on monitoring the impact of EAEU procedures on the situation within the Union. According to Mishustin, the next meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council is scheduled to be held on October 1-2 in Minsk.