| Publication |
2012.
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| Summary/Abstract |
RUSSIA'S ACCESSION to the World Trade Organization (WTO) began as early as 1993, in the form of the Russian application to become a member of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). When the WTO came into existence in 1995, the application was automatically transferred to the new organization. Even in this early phase the question of Russia's GATT/WTO membership was of great significance for Russia's relationship with the EU. For the EU as a strong economic actor, questions of trade are often paramount, and GATT rules were taken as the basis for the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) between Russia and the EU, which was signed in 1994, although it did not come into force until 1997. During the phase of negotiating the PCA, it appeared clear that Russia would join GATT (later WTO) and adhere to the system of rules for economic interactions which had been established by most of the world's economies. Not only would Russia accept these rules, it would also become part of the process through which they were agreed upon, due to the way the WTO works. The organization develops through a series of "negotiation rounds," which allow it to address ever more issues dealing with trade and related spheres. The most recent of these is the Doha Round, which has been taking place since 2001 and does not show signs of a successful conclusion in the near future.
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