Russia Drops Joint WTO Bid with Belarus, Kazakhstan

Russia Drops Joint WTO Bid with Belarus, Kazakhstan

Russia’s Economic Development Ministry announced last week that it will not pursue a joint membership bid to the World Trade Organization (WTO) with Belarus and Kazakhstan – a plan originally announced in June by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

Russiais still actively pursuing WTO membership and has declared its intention to continue to work towards forming a customs union with Belarus and Kazakhstan. Nonetheless, Russia has dropped its plan for a joint bid because it could complicate and further delay Russia’s WTO accession process. For separate nations to jointly apply for WTO membership as a single customs union, they must prove that they operate under a single, sovereign trade directive. This condition does not currently exist between Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. Russia is the world’s largest economy outside of the WTO and has been pursuing membership since 1993.

Russia’s accession to the WTO would be a positive development for U.S. pork and beef exports to Russia, since it would bring Russia under the trading rules that apply to all WTO member countries. 

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The U.S. Meat Export Federation (www.USMEF.org) is the trade association responsible for developing international markets for the U.S. red meat industry and is funded by USDA, exporting companies, and the beef, pork, corn and soybean checkoff programs.

For more information, contact Jim Herlihy at jherlihy@usmef.org.

USMEF complies with all equal opportunity, non-discrimination and affirmative action measures applicable to it by contract, government rule or regulation or as otherwise provided by law.

Russia Drops Joint WTO Bid with Belarus, Kazakhstan

Russia’s Economic Development Ministry announced last week that it will not pursue a joint membership bid to the World Trade Organization (WTO) with Belarus and Kazakhstan – a plan originally announced in June by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

Russiais still actively pursuing WTO membership and has declared its intention to continue to work towards forming a customs union with Belarus and Kazakhstan. Nonetheless, Russia has dropped its plan for a joint bid because it could complicate and further delay Russia’s WTO accession process. For separate nations to jointly apply for WTO membership as a single customs union, they must prove that they operate under a single, sovereign trade directive. This condition does not currently exist between Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. Russia is the world’s largest economy outside of the WTO and has been pursuing membership since 1993.

Russia’s accession to the WTO would be a positive development for U.S. pork and beef exports to Russia, since it would bring Russia under the trading rules that apply to all WTO member countries. 

# # #

The U.S. Meat Export Federation (www.USMEF.org) is the trade association responsible for developing international markets for the U.S. red meat industry and is funded by USDA, exporting companies, and the beef, pork, corn and soybean checkoff programs.

For more information, contact Jim Herlihy at jherlihy@usmef.org.

USMEF complies with all equal opportunity, non-discrimination and affirmative action measures applicable to it by contract, government rule or regulation or as otherwise provided by law.