The trade bloc of five post-Soviet states is built on mutual respect, a Russian deputy foreign minister has said Fair and equitable treatment of all members is the cornerstone of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Aleksandr Pankin has said.The bloc, which currently includes Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan, was founded in 2014. Speaking to the Eurasian Dialogue podcast on Thursday, Pankin said the EAEU remains focused on raising living standards and fostering business ties.“Conflicts are being resolved through genuinely equal dialogue. The EAEU operates on the principle of consensus, meaning that members reach compromises which reflect and serve the interests of all parties. No one benefits at the expense of another,” the diplomat said.“Nobody is being forced to stay. Everyone understands that within the EAEU, the interests of nations with smaller economies are taken into account more than they would be in any other framework,” he added. “The EAEU is neither a burden nor a shackle – this is evident from the fact that all members are fully free to trade with other regions. No one is required to limit themselves to autarkic trade within the bloc or to invest only inside it. We do not operate a planned economy with quotas and regional specializations like in the Soviet era. Instead, all members compete with one another in a shared common market,” Pankin explained.According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the combined GDP of all EAEU members has reached $2.6 trillion over the past decade. The organization has trade agreements with Serbia, Vietnam, and Iran, and is currently negotiating with Mongolia and the UAE.In an interview published by Rossiyskaya Gazeta on Wednesday, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksey Overchuk said that more countries are likely to see the EAEU as “a safe haven” amid trade wars and rising international tensions.