Russia WTO Bid: Last Obstacle, Georgia

Russia and the WTO. Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Russia has sought membership with the World Trade Organization (WTO) since 1993. After 18 years, the WTO continues to be a goal of Russia under the leadership of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. The challenge Russia has faced in past efforts to join the organization, which now counts 153 member-nations, is its significant body of regulatory trade barriers and tariffs.

Former WTO Judge James Bacchus, now a member of Greenberg Traurig's global law practice, recently wrote an article in the International Business Times that describes Russia's barriers to trade as about the most restrictive of any industrialized nation in the world. To put it conservatively, Bacchus is a bit skeptical of whether Russia would abide by WTO's rules even if admitted.

Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergi Kapanadze is an active part of the ongoing WTO talks with Russia. As a WTO-member, Georgia has made border crossing points in Abkhazia and South Ossentia one of the conditional issues for its vote for Russia's accession to the WTO.

"We still insist on the legalization of (Georgian) customs posts at the Abkhazian and South Ossetian border," says Niko Mchedlishvili, press secretary of the Georgian prime minister, to the Kommersant daily paper on 05/04/11. "However, the Russian side is so far refusing to agree to our demands. The only thing we have agreed is to hold a third round in late May."

While a third round of Swiss-mediated talks on Moscow's WTO entry terms is set to continue in Bern in late May, the Peterson Institute released a report in April that estimates that U.S. exports to Russia could double to $19B if Russia joins the WTO. Not surprisingly, the Obama-administration wants Russia to join the WTO, as indicated by the White House's joint statement with Russia on the commitment to its WTO accession.

DISCLAIMER: Because of the generality of this update, the information provided here may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations. This profile may constitute attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Any correspondence with this blog does not constitute a client/attorney relationship. Neither the content on this blog nor transmissions between you and the blogger through this blog are intended to provide legal or other advice or to create an attorney-client relationship.