Medvedev:Russia sign Eurasian Union treaty

President Dmitry Medvedev said Thursday that he expects a treaty on the creation of the Eurasian Union would be signed on Friday. "Two leaders of our close countries, Belarus and Kazakhstan, will come here tomorrow and I hope we will sign an agreement concerning further economic integration," Medvedev was quoted by Interfax news agency as saying. Medvedev spoke during a Kremlin meeting with a group of retired people and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. The president said the Eurasian Union, which was initiated by Putin, "has a very bright future" while the treaty will be an "important and painful step." Medvedev said the concept of the Eurasian Union is mature and a frame of future cooperation is trying to be created that will be of any country's own will to join in. Putin proposed the concept of "Eurasian Union," which includes former Soviet states, in an article published in October. According to his initiative, the Russia-Belarus-Kazakhstan Customs Union should gradually transform itself into the Eurasian Union, which is expected to become a bridge between Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.