Common currency inevitable if EEU gains foothold - economist

In an interview with Tert.am economist Artak Manukyan commented on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s statement on a Russia-Belarus-Kazakhstan monetary union.

According to him, if the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) gains a foothold, switching over to a common currency will be inevitable.

“It is impossible that the EEU member-states have different currencies. So a common currency is the next step,” he said.

The Russian currency is relatively stable now.

As regards Armenia, Mr Zakaryan noted that, regrettably, Armenia is not a key actor in the process.

“That is, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan have to obey decisions by Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia,” he said.

A transition to a common currency is realistic unless the EEU disintegrates by 2020.

Although Armenia’s economy is dollarized, Mr Zakaryan does not see any serious problems. One of the negative impacts of a common currency may be affecting Armenia’s sovereignty.

“It should be noted, however, that a common currency implies an efficient banking policy – if any of the member-states faced problems, it means that the entire EEU will face the same problem,” he said.