THE EURASIAN ECONOMIC UNION AND THE SILK ROAD ECONOMIC BELT CONJUGACY: COMPLEMENTARY RESOURCE AND ADIAPHOROUS REALITY.

The article deals with the prospects of interstate cooperation in the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) - Russia's integration project - and the Silk Road Economic Belt (One Belt, One Road - OBOR) - China's initiative of building land trade routes from Asia to Europe. The author points out that the political consensus reached on implementation of the EAEU and the OBOR between the leaders of two countries significantly reduces geopolitical risks in Russian-Chinese relations and clarifies rules of regional competition in Central Asia. The paper analyses macroeconomic challenges for Chinese and Russian projects. In particular, it is emphasized that sea transport preference in the world trade and the coastal areas dominance in the world industry require from the RF and the PRC technological, administrative and legal solutions to provide effective realization of the initiatives. Particular attention is paid to the challenges for Russian transport and logistics system which significantly reduce the efficiency of industrial cooperation within the framework of the EAEU and limit Russian participation in the OBOR. In this article, short-term, medium-term and longterm scenarios of Russian-Chinese cooperation are addressed through the lens of the EAEU and the OBOR interaction including foreign trade, investment and cooperation in legal sphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]