Russia to Pursue Solo WTO Bid |
|
April 27, 2010
Russia will revive its bid to join the World Trade Organization on its own, reversing course and removing a major obstacle to membership for the largest country outside the trade block.
Russia will revive its bid to join the World Trade Organization on its own, reversing course and removing a major obstacle to membership for the largest country outside the trade block.
"Russia will formalize its membership on its own," Mr. Shuvalov told reporters in Washington on Monday, according to the official ITAR-TASS news agency. "It will be good for everyone if Russia becomes a WTO member before we create a common market with Kazakhstan and Belarus."
Russia has been asking to join the WTO as part of a customs union with those two neighbors. That would have been impossible, say WTO officials. The stumbling block was a ploy: Russia hasn't really wanted to get in, say people with ties to Russian trade officials.
Related Links
