ECONOMIC INTEGRATION STRUGGLES IN THE POST-SOVIET SPACE- THE ORGANIZATION FOR DEMOCRACY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (GUAM)

THE COLLAPSE OF THE SOVIET UNION BROUGHT FORW ARD A NEW FRAMEWORK FOR MULTILATERAL COOPERATION INSPIRED BY THE MODELS O F THE WESTERN WORLD SUCH AS EUROPEAN UNION`S SINGLE MARKET OR NAFTA. THIS NEW LANDSCAPE STARTED TO EMERGE FROM THE PREVIOUS EXISTING BILATERAL AGREEMENTS WHICH PAVED THE ROAD AHEAD FO R A REGIONAL ECONOMIC IN TEGRATION PROCESS, COMMONLY KNOWN AS A FREE TRADE AREA, BUT THE DIFFICULT NEGOTIATING POSITIONS OF THE MEMBER STATES GAVE LITTLE SUPPORT FOR THE CREATION OF A PROPER COMMON MARKET AMONG THEM. THE PRESENCE OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION I N THE REGION REMAINED DO MINANT, SINCE ALMOST ALL FORMS OF TRADE PARTNERSHIPS AND FORMAL AGREEMENTS NEEDED ITS SUPPORT OR GUIDANCE. OF ALL THE FORMS OF ECONOMIC INTEGRATION, OUR ARTICLE FOCUSES ON THE ORGANIZATION FOR DEMOCRACY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (GUA M), THE ONLY REGIONAL DE VELOPMENT ARCHITECTURE OF WHICH RUSSIA IS NOT PART OF. USING ANALYTICAL GRAPHS, WE ARGUE THAT ALBEIT DIFFERENT FORMS OF ECONOMIC INTEGRATION, THE TRADE FLOWS FOLLOW THE INTERNATIONAL TRENDS AND THUS THE GUAM COMMERCIAL TIES ARE BASE D MOSTLY ON PROXIMITY AND HISTORICAL LINKAGES RATHER THAN FREE TRADE AREA AGREEMENTS.

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