The prospects for cooperation between the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union and Myanmar in the industrial sector were discussed at the first meeting of the joint working group on interaction between the Eurasian Economic Commission and the Government of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, featuring Georgy Arzumanyan, Deputy Director of the EEC Industrial Policy Department.
“The Eurasian Economic Union is open to mutually beneficial cooperation with Myanmar. About a year ago, the Commission and the Government of Myanmar signed a Memorandum of Cooperation and now we are actively discussing promising areas of work, including in industry,” emphasized Georgy Arzumanyan.
He introduced his foreign colleagues to the activities of the Commission in this area, spoke about priority areas of work, joint projects of the EAEU states and tools for deepening industrial cooperation in the Union.
Representatives of the Myanmar Ministry of Industry noted that the share of industry and construction in Myanmar's GDP was about 20%. The most developed industries in Myanmar are the extractive, textile and woodworking industries. In each of them, for example in light industry, it is possible to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation.
It should be noted that in recent years, trade between the Union countries and Myanmar has been developing more and more actively. Russia mainly exports finished metal products, computer, electronic and optical equipment, petroleum products, chemical products and electrical equipment. Other Member States supply to Myanmar software and hardware, medicines, etc. Clothing and footwear are the main imports from Myanmar to Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Imports of manufacturing products to the EAEU market increased by almost a third over the year.
The Memorandum of Interaction between the Eurasian Economic Commission and the Government of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar was signed on June 15, 2023. It contemplates the interaction in customs and technical regulation, industry, energy, transport, and a number of other areas.