Georgia says no accord in talks on Russia WTO bid

Reuters/Tbilisi

Kapanadze: ‘The negotiations are over and ... they collapsed’

Talks between bitter rivals Georgia and Russia over Moscow’s bid to join the World Trade Organisation (WTO) ended without agreement yesterday, and Georgia said it would block Russian accession unless Moscow’s position changes.The failure to resolve a dispute rooted in a 2008 war between the ex-Soviet republics undermines Russia’s chances of joining the WTO this year, a target set by Moscow and the US, and could worsen Russia’s relations with the West.“The negotiations are over and we can say that they collapsed, ended with no result at all,” Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergi Kapanadze, the head of his country’s delegation to the talks in Switzerland, told Reuters by telephone.Since the WTO, a 153-nation trade rules body, makes decisions by consensus, Georgia – a pro-Western Nato aspirant – has an effective veto over membership for the much larger Russia.Kapanadze said the sticking point was Russia’s refusal to let Georgia have access to information about trade in the breakaway Georgian regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, which Moscow recognised as independent nations after the five-day war.“Georgia cannot give its consent to Russia’s entry to the WTO until Russia changes its position on trade within the occupied territories,” Kapanadze said, referring to the two regions, where Russia maintains sizeable military forces.Kapanadze said the talks were the last agreed round of negotiations “and we do not see any sense in continuing talks just for the sake of talks”. But a Russian source close to negotiations said they would resume on October 17.Russia is the largest economy outside the 153-member world trade rules body, which it has been seeking to enter since 1993.Georgia halted WTO talks with Russia in April 2008 after the Kremlin ordered the lifting of economic sanctions against Abkhazia and South Ossetia in the run-up to the war that August.Russian forces repelled a Georgian attempt to regain control of South Ossetia, which has long been outside the sway of the central government in Tbilisi.Almost all remaining trade issues between Russia and WTO members including the US and European Union have been resolved since US President Barack Obama made support for Russia’s bid a part of efforts to improve ties with Moscow.Senior negotiators have said that it would be possible to formally admit Russia at a ministerial meeting in December if accession talks remain on track.In pointed remarks this week, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin urged the US and the European Union to help overcome Georgia’s objections.Failure to bring Russia into the WTO soon could damage relations between Russia and the West as Putin prepares to return to the presidency in an election next March.