Commonwealth of Independent States
See also: Post-Soviet states#Regional organizationsThe Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a loose organization in which most former Soviet republics participate. A visa-free regime operates among members and a free-trade area is planned for the beginning of 2011. Ukraine is not an official member, but does participate in the organization. Some members are more integrated than others, for example Russia and Belarus form a Union State. In 2010 Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan formed a customs union and a single market (Common Economic Space) is scheduled to commence on 1 January 2012. The Presidents of Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan plan to create a Eurasian Union with a Eurasian Commission in 2015. A common currency is also planned, potentially to be named "evraz". Some other countries in the region are potential members of these organizations.
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Famous quotes containing the words commonwealth of, commonwealth, independent and/or states:
“We must conceive of this whole universe as one commonwealth of which both gods and men are members.”
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“This little world, this little state, this little commonwealth of our own....”
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“I was more independent than any farmer in Concord, for I was not anchored to a house or farm, but could follow the bent of my genius, which is a very crooked one, every moment.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“fundamentally an organism has conscious mental states if and only if there is something that it is like to be that organism—something it is like for the organism.”
—Thomas Nagel (b. 1938)