The European Union and the Unites States will support Belarus in its accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), Belarusian Foreign Minister Uladzimir Makey said on Tuesday.
“Belarus has made substantial progress in bilateral talks with the WTO members. The country has finished negotiations with 12 states and signed protocols with Japan and South Korea in April. We are now holding substantive negotiations with another 13 WTO members, including the EU and the U.S. The important thing is that we have managed to muster the support of the EU and the U.S. in our WTO accession campaign,” state-run news agency BelTA quotes Makey.
Any state or customs territory having full autonomy in the conduct of its trade policies may accede to the WTO, but all WTO members must agree on the terms. This is done through the establishment of a working party of WTO members and through a process of negotiations. WTO membership means a balance of rights and obligations.
Belarus’ Working Party was established on October 27, 1993. WTO members welcomed the resumption of WTO membership negotiations for Belarus when the Working Party on the country’s accession met in January 2017 – 12 years after its last formal meeting.
КА, belsat.eu
