The Russian Federation (Russia) applied for accession to the GATT 1947 in June 1993 (L7243) and circulated its Memorandum on the Foreign Trade Regime in March 1994 (L7410). With the establishment of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Russia's Working Party was transformed into a WTO Working Party, and met for the first time in July 1995. Initial meetings of the Working Party focused on Russia's description of its trade regime, and the review of existing legislation relevant to WTO obligations. Members submitted written questions and requests for information on topics ranging from the protection of intellectual property, to subsidies, to customs issues, to trade in services, to the application of standards and sanitary and phyto-sanitary measures to imports. Based on the information presented in these first meetings, Working Party members presented their views on how Russia should bring its trade regime into conformity with WTO provisions and requested that Russia undertake commitments to that end. As discussions continued, Russia progressively reformed its economic system and began drafting legislation to bring its laws and other measures into conformity with WTO provisions.
A first draft of a report on these deliberations was circulated in 2002. WP members accepted a revised text in August 2008 as a solid framework for completing multilateral negotiations on the remaining issues and commitments. Russia's work to enact legislation necessary to comply with WTO provisions and bilateral commitments is ongoing.
Russia initiated market access negotiations on agriculture in 1998, services in 1999, and goods in 2000. Since that time, Russia has concluded negotiations with nearly 60 WTO Members (at this point, only Georgia is still negotiationg) and signed bilateral agreements on specific commitments on goods and/or services. The WTO Secretariat is combining the results of the individual negotiations into consolidated schedules of specific commitments on goods and on services. In addition, Russia must reach agreement with WP Members on an acceptable level for Russia's agricultural supports and a commitment on export subsidies.
The United States and Russia reached a WTO bilateral market access agreement in November 2006. The agreement on goods provides for phased reductions in Russia's tariffs, with particular emphasis on products of interest to U.S. exporters, including eventual duty free entry of information technology products (as a result of Russia's joining the Information Technology Agreement) and harmonization of tariffs on chemical imports, including pharmaceuticals, at low rates of duty. Services commitments include more liberal access to the financial services sector, with eventual opportunities for branching in insurance, and commitments in audio visual, professional, distribution, express delivery, and telecommunication services, among others. These commitments will come into force upon Russia's accession.
Working Party Members must approve the results of the negotiations, including the protocol of accession, report of the Working Party, and Russia's schedules of specific commitments for goods and services. This package will then be sent to the General Council (or Ministerial Conference) for approval and Russia will be invited to join the WTO. Russia will become a member 30 days after it formally notifies that WTO that it has accepted the terms of for its accession.
In separate bilateral agreements also concluded in November 2006, the United States and Russia addressed a number of specific measures impeding U.S. market access, inter alia, sanitary and phyto-sanitary measures particularly covering poultry and meat exports to Russia, reductions in export duties on ferrous metal scrap and copper cathodes, import licensing of information technology products with encryption capability, and intellectual property protection, particularly in the areas of enforcement and the protection of undisclosed information for pharmaceuticals and agricultural chemicals. Implementation of these additional bilateral agreements was not tied to the date of Russia's accession, and Russia's implementation of these commitments remains a continuing issue for the United States and Russia.
