By Country / Russia
Russia To Drop WTO Trade Rules If Not Admitted
July 04, 2006
Vladimir Putin (file photo) (ITAR-TASS)
Putin said today that if Russia for some reason can not reach agreement on WTO membership, Moscow will no longer fulfill WTO rules.
"The conditions in which the Russian economy is functioning are much more open and more liberal than those in some countries that have already joined [the WTO]," Putin said. "And if we, for some reason, do not succeed in reaching a final agreement, we will, of course, revoke our commitments to some of the agreements that we have not only adopted but are also fulfilling without being a member of the organization."
Putin said the only country still refusing to endorse Russian membership in the trade body is the United States.
(AFP)