Russia hopes to finalise talks on joining the World Trade Organisation 2011

MOSCOW. January 19. KAZINFORM Russia hopes to finalise technically the negotiations on joining the World Trade Organisation /WTO/ before the year ends, Head of the Trade Negotiations Department of Russia's Ministry of Economic Development, the head of Russia's delegation at talks, Maxim Medvedkov said on Tuesday.

Before April ends, it will be clear if we shall be able to bring the negotiations to a final decision," he said. "Our new round of the talks is due next week," he said adding that the negotiations schedule of the Geneva working group covers April inclusive and has three more meetings along with the upcoming one.

Russia has managed to agree with its partners on 99 percent of disputable issues, Medvedkov said.

"The question of access /for importers/ to Russia's market of meat remains open," he said. "Of course, this is not the only sensitive issue."

Russia will have to find a compromise with twelve countries participating in the negotiations.

"I am not prepared to say what this compromise will be like," he said, adding that Russia still intends to lower the quotas for meat importers. "The duties within quotas still remain unaltered."

Another disputable issue is Russia's state support of agriculture over its joining the WTO. In certain spheres, which the WTO believes not affecting international competition, Russia will be able to direct its subsidies in the amounts it prefers. Such spheres, Medvedkov said, may be for example support of infrastructures and the social sphere. The state budget expenses will be limited for the spheres, which, according to the WTO, affect the competition. According to agreements reached over earlier talks, Russia will keep the right to make subsidies by 2012 in the amount of nine billion U.S. dollars, and then within 5-7 years it will lower the subsidies to the present 4-4.5 million U.S. dollars, Kazinform cites Itar-Tass.

If the talks in April are successful, Medvedkov said, the mechanism of Russia's joining the WTO will be as follows: "The working group, which is the negotiating organisation and which runs the process, must prepare all the documents that make several thousand pages, then it will have them approved by all WTO members and will forward the documents along with the recommendations to let Russia join the WTO to the General Council of the organisation."

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