Russia hopes to conclude WTO talks in 2010: Medvedev
- Source: Xinhua
- [11:44 November 14 2009]
- Comments
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev expressed hope on Friday that the negotiations on the country's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) could be finished next year.
"WTO accession remains on our agenda: we hope to conclude talks in 2010," said Medvedev in an article titled "Russia's role in turbulent times" for a special edition of the Economist that was published on Friday.
Russia, which has been seeking WTO membership for 16 years, is the largest economy still outside the global trade regime.
"Russia sees itself as part of the global trade system, and wants to build stronger, more friendly and comfortable relations with all our partners," Medvedev wrote in the article, as cited by the Kremlin website.
Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan agreed in early June to establish a customs bloc and seek joint accession to the WTO, a decision opposed by the European Union and the United States.
The Customs Code will be handed over to the heads of state for approval in November and unified customs regulations are due to take effect at the start of 2010.
