Commonwealth of Independent States

Successor body to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, initially formed as a new commonwealth of Slav republics on 8 December 1991 by the presidents of the Russian Federation, Belarus, and Ukraine. On 21 December, eight of the nine remaining non-Slav republics – Moldova, Tajikistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan – joined the CIS at a meeting held in Kazakhstan's former capital, Alma-Ata (now Almaty). Georgia joined in 1994. Turkmenistan assumed associate, rather than permanent, member status from August 2005. The CIS formally came into existence in January 1992 when President Gorbachev resigned and the Soviet government voted itself out of existence. It has no formal political institutions and its role is uncertain. The CIS headquarters are in Minsk, Belarus.

The main objectives in founding the CIS were to ensure that some measure of economic, financial, and monetary cooperation continued in order to avert a collapse in inter-republican trade; to coordinate price liberalization and market reform; to maintain some degree of coordination in foreign (and especially military) policy, transport, and communications; and to ensure recognition of borders and thus prevent inter-republican conflicts. CIS decisions are reached through regular summits of heads of state and the formation of ministerial committees, with, in theory, all CIS members being equals; however, some members have complained of Russian domination.

Military matters Initially, the inherited Soviet army was placed under a unified command. However, the majority of the republics subsequently set up their own independent forces, and in June 1993 it was agreed that the unified defence structure should be abolished and replaced by a committee of joint staff responsible for coordinating military cooperation between the individual states. At a summit in December 1993 Russia secured bilateral agreements with all members excepting Moldova, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan, giving it ‘the right to oversee military policies’. In 1994 the CIS successfully negotiated ceasefires in Abkhazia, Georgia, and in the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan, stationing peacekeeping forces in these regions, as well as in Tajikistan. In January 1996, members unanimously approved plans to create a united air-defence system; this was viewed as a possible first step towards the creation of a common security alliance. However, the October 1997 CIS summit, held in Moldova, collapsed in acrimony, leading to Russia's fears that the body was beginning to fall apart as its member states started establishing other international ties. In May 2001, CIS leaders agreed to create a 3,000-strong rapid reaction force, designed to respond to the perceived threat posed by Islamic militants in Central Asia.

Economic matters It was originally proposed that CIS members keep a single currency, the rouble, but by 1994 the majority of republics had introduced their own currencies. In 1994 Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan created their own social, economic, and military union. In March 1996, Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan went on to establish even closer economic ties. These four republics, together with Tajikistan, approved a treaty establishing a Eurasian Economic Community, modelled on the European Economic Community. One of its goals was the adoption of a single currency.