Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed the law ratifying the treaty on the creation of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) between Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan.
Putin made the announcement on October 3 during a government meeting.
Under the treaty, the EEU will begin functioning as of January 1, 2015. It intensifies the economic cooperation among the three countries that was begun with a Russian-led customs union.
The presidents of the three countries are scheduled to meet in Minsk on October 10 to exchange ratification documents.
Armenia is also set to join the agreement in the near future.
"All four of us are beginning to build a single economic space," Russian Deputy Economic Development Minister Aleksei Likhachyov was quoted by ITAR-TASS as saying.
