FEBRUARY 27, 2019 AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF BELARUS AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION ON COOPERATION IN THE PROTECTION OF COMPETITION SIGNED
On February 27, 2019, a solemn ceremony of signing the Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Belarus and the Government of the Russian Federation on cooperation in the protection of competition (hereinafter - the Agreement) was held at the Federal Antimonopoly Service (Moscow).
The purpose of the Agreement is to create a legal framework for the cooperation of the antimonopoly authorities of the two countries in identifying and preventing violations of antitrust laws, including from economic entities of third countries.
The agreement will allow the antimonopoly authorities of the Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation to stop violations promptly and effectively, control mergers of economic entities in cases that lead to a negative effect both for the economy of a particular industry or region, and for national economies.
The competent authorities of the parties responsible for the implementation of the Agreement are:
- from the Belarusian side - the Ministry of Antimonopoly Regulation and Trade of the Republic of Belarus;
- from the Russian side - the Federal Antimonopoly Service.
The agreement will be the first bilateral Belarusian-Russian international treaty that enshrines the tools of practical interaction of antimonopoly authorities in law enforcement. For example, in terms of information exchange (including confidential), conducting certain legal proceedings (requesting documents, interviewing individuals, obtaining necessary information from government agencies, conducting expertise, etc.), coordinating law enforcement activities (conducting joint audits , simultaneous initiation of anti-monopoly law violation cases, making decisions, etc.).
