Russia and the US signed a key trade agreement on the sidelines of a meeting of Pacific Rim leaders yesterday -- a major economic milestone that paves the way for Russia's entry into the WTO.
As the largest economy still outside the 149-member WTO, which sets the rules for global trade, the deal with the US is a powerful vote of confidence in Russia's investment climate.
It also marks a bright spot in the two countries' relations that have been marred by disagreements over Iran's controversial nuclear program and Washington's fears of a roll back of democratic freedoms under Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"I am very pleased to be here to celebrate this very important milestone as Russia moves one important step closer to becoming a member of the WTO," said Susan Schwab, the US trade representative. "Russia belongs as a full-fledged member of the WTO."
Membership in the WTO would mean Russia, a big oil and gas exporter, would receive the same favorable tariff rates for its products as other members. Also, Russia and other member countries would have to follow WTO rules in trade disputes.
Freer trade would give Russian companies more opportunities to sell their goods on world markets. Joining the WTO also might make its sizable market of potential customers even more attractive to companies in the US and elsewhere.
Russian Trade Secretary German Gref and Schwab inked the deal in Hanoi on the sidelines of the APEC summit, just hours before Putin and US President George W. Bush were due to hold talks.
The deal had been widely anticipated. On Nov. 10, both sides announced that all the main questions had been settled and all that remained was for a few technical questions to be nailed down.
On Saturday Gref said that the signing would mark the end of a "marathon" six-year process of signing bilateral agreements with 57 countries. Next, he said the two-way deals must be consolidated so that all members trade with the candidate country under the same rules. Gref said he expected that process to be completed by the middle of next year.
Moscow also faces political challenges from Georgia and Moldova, which it has angered by limiting their exports to Russia in moves their leaders say are punishment for their pro-Western politics. Gref said on Saturday that he hopes that those problems would also be resolved by the middle of next year.
About four months ago, US and Russia had appeared on the verge of an agreement. But in a major embarrassment for Moscow, it failed to materialize -- right before the summit of leaders of the world's wealthiest countries that Putin was hosting in St Petersburg.
Vietnam, hosting the APEC summit, was approved to become the WTO's 150th member earlier this month. It is expected to officially join the world body next month.
‘NO SECURITY RISK’: The Railway Bureau reassured the public that the technicians’ activities were limited to technical guidance and did not involve sensitive systems The Railway Bureau yesterday said it had invited eight Chinese technicians to assist with an airport MRT construction project. The bureau issued the confirmation after an Internet user said Chinese nationals had entered the construction zone of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport’s Terminal 3 project. They asked why “individuals from an enemy state” were allowed access to such a major national infrastructure project, which raised serious concerns over Taiwan’s industrial safety, sensitive systems and information security. The bureau’s Northern Region Engineering Branch Office said subcontractor Taiwan Handle Industrial Co (台灣手把工業) of the Taoyuan airport MRT’s “Contract No. CU05 Project A14 Station Civil, MEP &
The National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology yesterday showcased its locally developed variants of the Vision 60 robotic patrol dog, which it plans to deploy on the nation’s outlying territories in the South China Sea. The variants were produced under the Joint Lab project — created by the institute and domestic companies — and assembled with domestically produced motors, lenses and artificial intelligence (AI) systems alongside licensed tech from the US, Missile and Rocket Systems Research Division deputy director Jen Kuo-kang (任國光) told the media event at a military base in Taipei’s Dazhi (大直) area. Taiwan has built up its strengths
NOT IMMEDIATE: Taiwan has a chance to appeal the proposed 10 percent tariff before it starts, while other countries face a 12.5 percent tariff from the trade office Taiwan is among 60 economies determined by the US to have failed to impose or enforce a ban on the importation of goods produced with forced labor, according to a notice released on Tuesday by the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR), which proposed imposing an additional 10 percent or more tariff on them. The USTR in a statement said that following an investigation, it had determined under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 that the failure of the 60 economies to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labor is
TIT-FOR-TAT: The US allegedly revoked the visa of a Chinese national working at Xinhua News Agency in the US in response to Beijing’s expulsion of Vivian Wang The Presidential Office yesterday condemned China for expelling a New York Times correspondent from Beijing following the newspaper’s interview with President William Lai (賴清德), saying the move highlighted Beijing’s suppression of press freedom and its threat to international news media. Taiwan has noted a series of recent incidents in which Beijing used similar tactics to “threaten and pressure international media outlets and journalists,” Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said in a statement. “This concerns not only press freedom and freedom of expression, but also the safety of journalists, and Taiwan and relevant partners are paying close attention to the situation,” she
RSS