This article examines the dynamics of regional integration and economic convergence in the post-Soviet world during the period 1999-2008, both considered as a whole and on the level of individual country groups. While the trade integration experienced a negative trend, at the same time one can observe an unprecedented expansion of labour migration - thus suggesting that integration of factor flows can outperform integration of markets for goods and services, at least in this specific case. Clustering processes of the post-Soviet states for economic convergence and for economic integration seem to be unaffected by each other.

An in-depth analysis of one of the most important and complex issues of the post-Soviet era, namely the (re-)integration of this highly interconnected region. The book considers the evolution of 'holding-together' groups since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, looking at intergovernmental interaction and informal economic and social ties.

Legal Aspects of the Regional Integration Processes in the Post-Soviet Area is the first ever comprehensive overview of regional integration processes in the territory of the former USSR introducing the core concepts of regional integration theory and presenting a solid foundation of factual information regarding all the regional integration agreements (RIAs) operating in the Eurasian landmass and consisting of the former Soviet republics. The book analyzes the legal nature and background of the regional integration in the framework of the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Russian-Belarusian Union, the Single Economic Space, the Eurasian Economic Community and the Collective Security Treaty Organization. It also deals with the RIAs created outside of the Russian control in the format of GUAM and among Central Asian countries. Finally, the book contains conclusive remarks attempting to assess the possibility of the creation of an Eurasian Union.

Libman and Vinokurov discuss the evolution of post-Soviet regional integration as a prominent case of 'holding-together regionalism' -- integration of countries originally belonging to a single political entity. They provide a detailed account of the economic, political and social aspects of the interaction of post-Soviet countries, studying both formal regionalism and informal linkages between companies and individuals. The book pays particular attention to the political economy of this process, assessing both the reasons for the ineffectiveness of post-Soviet regionalism until recently and the driving forces of its persistence. It investigates migration flows, mutual trade and investments, as well as interaction in key sectors of infrastructure, such as telecommunications, transportation, agriculture and power utilities.

Bridging foreign policy analysis and international political economy, this volume offers a new look at the problem of agency in comparative regional integration studies. It examines evolving regional integration projects in the Eurasian space, defined as the former Soviet Union countries and China, and the impact that Russian foreign policy has had on integration in the region. Mikhail Molchanov argues that new regionalism in Eurasia should be seen as a reactive response to contemporary challenges that these developing states face in the era of globalization. Regional integration in this part of the world treads the unknown waters and may not simply repeat the early steps in the evolution of the European Union. The question of a hegemonic leadership in particular, as exercised by a country that spearheads regional integration efforts, animates much of the discussion offered in the book. Moreover, Eurasian regionalisms are plural phenomena because of complementary and competing projects that engage the same, or partially overlapping, groups of countries. By combining foreign policy studies with an examination of the international political economy of regionalism in Eurasia the author furthers our understanding of new regionalism, both theoretically and empirically.

This book evaluates the utility of the Eurasian Economic Union in economic, political, cultural and geostrategic dimensions. It does so through a systematic comparison of the bloc with aspects of the European Union along a number of criteria derived from integration theory. The book concludes that the EAEU is a useless undertaking, at least for Russia, in any of the integration dimensions discussed. This is so because of the inherent properties of the region, and also because of the behaviour of the member states in the context of Russia’s resistance to the West. Besides, the principles of liberal economics, endorsed by the union, contribute to asymmetries in development among its member states. In addition to a symbolic event spotlighting Russia’s regional leadership, the union appears mainly as a shop where gas is sold below market prices, and as an import base of unskilled labour for Russia in conditions of Russia’s high unemployment and underemployment. Concurrently, the book discusses Russia’s grievances with the West, which have been inducing and constraining Eurasian integration at the same time.

The EU regards itself as the primary source for socio-economic modernization in the post-Soviet space, with the requirement for regulatory convergence with EU norms as its key mechanism. The Association Agreements consist of hard-law, legally binding commitments, but a higher degree of legalization cannot make up for the EU's lack of a blueprint for political and economic relations with the post-Soviet states. For Russia, the EU's exercise of 'normative power' in the post-Soviet space has resulted in important lesson learning. In particular, Russia has upgraded its approach to regional integration by investing in economic integration with a high degree of institutionalization and legalization to assert its position in the post-Soviet space. With a complex pattern of dependencies on the EU and Russia displayed by the countries in the common neighbourhood, the emergence of the ECU has multiple and far reaching implications for the EU. For many countries in the common neighbourhood, Russia's promotion of the ECU appears to be selling 'old wine in new bottles'. This is especially evident with the use of tried-and-tested mechanisms of influence - such as selective economic sanctions or 'loyalty discounts' on energy prices - to promote integration with the new regime. Nevertheless, the countries in-between have to find a formula for interactions with the new economic organization. The case of Ukraine is highly instructive. Russia's leverage over Ukraine in terms of energy and market access is likely to make Ukraine's economic integration with the EU even more costly and risky in the short-term and thereby weakening for Ukraine's regulatory convergence with the EU. For the partner countries, the co-existence of European and Eurasian integration regimes entails working out their priorities and strategies within the overlapping spheres of integration. The difficulty is compounded by different temporalities promoted by the EU and Russia, with each of them relying on asymmetries vis-a-vis the countries in the neighbourhood. This growing complexity would seem to necessitate from the EU a more self-reflective, purposeful and contextualized policy towards the post-Soviet states to effectively promote economic integration. This is unlikely to be forthcoming in the context of political and economic crises in the EU and the common neighbourhood will remain caught in the overlapping spheres of integration, resulting in a highly precarious regional context.