Russia to join WTO this year to save Europe

The decision about the Russian Federation joining the WTO may be made at the ministerial meeting on December 15. This was declared by presidential aide Arkady Dvorkovich. Thus, the Russian delegation managed to settle the issues with Georgia. Russia is ready not only to join the WTO, but also help the Eurozone financially. It is planned to invest approximately $10 billion in the European debt.
 "The work group, if we complete all necessary procedures, is to take place on November 11. If the decision of the working group is positive, the ministerial meeting on December 15 may complete the process of Russia joining the WTO," Dvorkovich was quoted by RIA Novosti.

Russia has been trying to join the WTO for 18 years and this process has long become a familiar backdrop of the economic life. Until 2010, Moscow argued with the U.S. on intellectual property protection and piracy prevention. The Americans demanded Russian to abandon the support of agriculture and abolish duties on foreign cars. In October of this year it became known that all the basic contradictions between the countries have been eliminated.

"Technically, in the long-term everyone benefits from lowering trade barriers, but in practice it is a little more complicated. If for services, trading and exporting joining the WTO is a positive factor, for manufacturing, engineering or agriculture it would be a blow because of the increased competition from imports. These temporary protective measures for domestic producers are subject to bargaining at the WTO accession", said an analyst of TKB Capital Alexander Kovalev.


Georgia was the last among the 150 WTO member countries to block the entry of Russia into the organization, putting forward not only economic demands in the form of solving the problem with allowing mineral water and wine to the Russian market, but also political ones. Tbilisi demands that its representatives are placed on the Russian-Abkhaz and South Ossetian-Russian border. It is not ruled out that this issue will be resolved by attracting independent observers.

As for the wine and mineral water, the position of Rospotrebnadzor has significantly softened. The department received applications from Georgian companies to supply products to Russia.
 "There are no major issues, but some points require clarification. Our Swiss colleagues, who are going to Tbilisi, will raise them in a conversation with the Georgian side. As a result of these talks further telephone consultations between the Swiss intermediaries and the Russian side may be held in Tbilisi, if necessary," said the presidential aide.


The final report on the accession of Russia to the WTO has been approved by the working group, said the head of the Russian delegation at the WTO negotiations Maxim Medvedkov. 
During the week, Russia will have to finalize some technical issues, after which the country would be ready to join the WTO. The latest round of multilateral consultations is to be held on November 7-8, and the meeting of the Working Party on 10-11 November, Interfax reported.

Speaking of the WTO, Dvorkovich again mentioned the possibility of financial participation of Russia in solving debt problems in the Eurozone. In particular, he said that Russia planned to invest up to $10 billion that will be used to solve the problems in the EU. In all likelihood he was talking about buying bonds of the crisis countries in Europe. The EU created a rescue fund of 2 trillion euros and is attracting developing countries.


Anastasia Romasheva
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