Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan: Forming a Customs Bloc

Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan have announced plans to form a tripartite customs bloc. While they will formally apply for membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO) as a union, their June 9 announcement has little to do with the WTO. Each country has already decided such membership is not part of its future. The announcement is more of a political statement that the three countries should now be thought of as one.