Commonwealth of Independent States News & Analysis

Commonwealth of Independent States

Including Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and an associate in Turkmenistan, the CIS is a Eurasian trade bloc that achieved about US$125 billion in multilateral trade in 2025, with an average GDP growth rate of approximately 4.7%. Key developments include new trade platforms (CIS Plus), focus on infrastructure like the CKU railway, and expansion of free trade agreements, especially for services, enhancing regional economic integration within Eurasia and beyond. Understand the CIS market for business. Get analysis on trade regulations, economic integration, and cross-border investment opportunities within this key post-Soviet economic zone.

Featured March 12, 2025

Russia, Uzbekistan: 2025 Trade & Investment Update   

Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov has been meeting with Uzbekistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Jamshid Khodjaev in Moscow. Manturov and Khodjaev are co-chairs of the Russia-Uzbekistan intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation. The two parties discussed priority issues regarding bilateral cooperation during the meeting, with Manturov emphasizing the significant potential of interregional cooperation. The two […]

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Featured March 12, 2025

Russia, Belarus and Pakistan Sign Freight Transport Agreements To Access “Far Arc” Destinations   

The Belarus Ministry of Transport and Communications has said that logistics companies from Russia, Belarus and Pakistan have signed a MoU that will allow increasing freight traffic between the three countries, but also with the countries of the “Far Arc” which also includes Brazil, Cuba, and Venezuela in Latin America; Nigeria and South Africa in […]

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March 10, 2025

Belarus To Assemble Tractors In Myanmar

Following last week’s visit of Myanmar Prime Minister Min Aung Hlaing to Moscow, spin off trade and investment ties with Belarus appear to have also been on the agenda, with the Minsk Tractor Works (MTW) announcing plans to set up an assembly production line of their tractors under the Belarus brand in Myanmar. A Myanmar […]

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March 9, 2025

INSTC Route East Proves Competitiveness By Linking Belarus With China

Russian Railways Logistics has signed a contract with one of Belarus’ leading fertilizer producers to provide a complete transport and logistics supply chain for full-scale container transportation of potash fertilizers in transit along the eastern route of the North-South international transport corridor (ITC) to China. Belarus is the world’s third-largest producer of potash, China is […]

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March 3, 2025

Russia’s Bugristoe Border Checkpoint With Kazakhstan To Double Capacity  

The Bugristoe checkpoint on the border of Russia and Kazakhstan has begun a significant upgrading which will double the capacity of the border crossing, when completed at the end of 2026, according to the Russian Federal State Budgetary Institution Rosgranstroy. The works include the construction of 29 buildings and structures, the organisation of 32 lanes […]

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February 23, 2025

Russia Eying Increases In Caspian Regional Exports 

Russia’s unrealized export potential in trade with the Caspian countries is estimated at US$3.5 billion, which is about 10% of Russia’s trade turnover with the countries of the region in 2023, according to Dmitry Volvach, Russia’s Deputy Minister of Economic Development of Russia. He was speaking at the Third Caspian Economic Forum in Tehran. Russia’s […]

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February 22, 2025

Russia–Belarus Bilateral Trade Up 107.4% In 2024

The Belarusian Deputy Economy Minister Alesya Abramenko has said that bilateral trade in goods and services between Russia and Belarus reached US$57.6 billion, achieving a growth rate of 107.4% in 2024. Abramenko was speaking at a meeting of the interdepartmental working meeting of the Belarusian Economy Ministry and the Russian Economic Development Ministry. She added […]

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February 18, 2025

Russia’s Busiest Road Crossing Border In 2024 Wasn’t With China  

Russia’s Ministry of Transport of Russia calculations for 2024 land border crossing have been evaluated and found some surprising conclusions –the largest volume of goods transiting Russia by road were sent not across the border of Russia with China, but across the border of Russia with Georgia through the Upper Lars checkpoint. That was followed […]

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February 14, 2025

Tomato Wars: Russia Simply Replaced EU Imports With Azerbaijani Produce 

Azerbaijan exported 145,600 tonnes of tomatoes in 2024, up 3.6% compared to the previous year, accordig to the Azeri State Statistics Committee, while the value of the product also increased – by 8.3% to reach US$175.4 million. In 2023, Azerbaijan exported 140,600 tonnes of tomatoes worth US$162 million. In both cases, the primary buyer was […]

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February 9, 2025

A Sweet Tooth For Russian Sweets: Russian Confectionary Exports Up 8% In 2024

Russia exported 700,000 tonnes of confectionery products in 2024, up 8% year-on-year, while the value of these exports grew 10.3% to reach US$1.81 billion, according to the Russian Association of Confectionery Industry Enterprises. They were presenting at the “Confectionery Products of the 21st Century” conference in Moscow last week. The 2025 export forecast for Russian […]

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February 5, 2025

Russia Imports More Butter From Azerbaijan, Uruguay and Argentina

Russia’s supply chains are showing signs of adapting far more quickly than in the past, with one example being butter imports from Azerbaijan, Uruguay and Argentina this year, which have all increased, according to Russia’s Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance (Rosselkhoznadzor). Azerbaijan delivered 940 tonnes of butter, four times the amount it did […]

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