Analysts' view on the consequences of Russia's accession to the WTO

The World Trade Organization (WTO) was established by the world community with the goal that all its participants could have an equal presence in the world's trading market.

Before joining the WTO, Russia, like other countries of the community, pursued certain goals, the main of which:

• Improving the access of Russian products to world markets;
• Elimination of discriminatory restrictions on trade with Russia by some countries;
• Obtaining legal guarantees from the world community in the event of trade disputes;
• An increase in the level of foreign investment that should have occurred in connection with bringing Russian laws into line with the WTO legislative framework;
• Improving the quality and competitiveness of Russian goods;
• Participation in the development of international trade rules, taking into account national interests;
• Enhancing the image of Russia as a WTO member.

Describing the consequences of Russia's accession to the WTO, the St. Petersburg Policy Foundation in its report "Russia and the WTO" notes that the Russians have faced certain problems. This conclusion was made by the Fund on the basis that our state is compelled to introduce measures of protection, and this is fraught with trade disputes.

According to analysts, the flow of meat and milk has significantly increased across the border open to foreign goods. The Institute for Agrarian Economics assessed the first consequences of Russia's accession to the WTO and stated that the import of dried milk by December 2012 exceeded 7.5 thousand tons, only in two months, making a jump of 210 percent.

Accession to the WTO of Russia in just two months increased the influx of butter by 136, and cheese by 116 percent, compared to the same period in 2011, much more began to come from products of animal origin, and the price of it on the territory of Russia is falling.

In the central regions of Russia, the price of live pigs declined by more than 30%, and customs duties on this type of products dropped from 40 to 5 percent.

Describing the consequences of Russia's accession to the WTO, the St. Petersburg Policy Foundation in its report notes that there are as yet no obvious advantages to joining the WTO. This situation may be due to the fact that Russia has not yet developed the "infrastructure" of staying in this world organization. There are no normative acts that regulate membership in the WTO, no Russian representation in the WTO has been created, it is noted that there is insufficient funding for legal support aimed at resolving disputes.

Russia's accession to the WTO has revealed one of the most important problems: in the WTO, Russia must act by one rule, and build relations in the Customs Union with Belarus and Kazakhstan - on the other. Despite the fact that the legal framework of the Customs Union was developed in accordance with WTO rules, the problem is exclusively in the interpretation of existing laws.

Studying the consequences of Russia's accession to the WTO, analysts note that in preparing for this process too much attention has been paid to ideological interpretation, and many practical issues have been missed.

As Maxim Medvedev, the director of the Department for Trade Negotiations of the Ministry of Economic Development, explains , Russia constantly and steadily defends its interests: some of the restrictions imposed on Russian goods have already been lifted, and the final results of the Russian presence in the WTO can be said after several years.