Yakobashvili: Georgia to hamper Russia's accession to WTO

Temur Yakobashvili, State Minister for Reintegration Issues, made his forecast in answer to the question on how the present status of Russian-Georgian relations can affect the next round of negotiations on accession of the Russian Federation to the World Trade Organization (WTO) to start early next week. Mr Yakobashvili has shared his opinion during the TV-bridge that was organized at the RIA "Novosti" press centre.

"The strained situation in Abkhazia will directly tell on the Russian-Georgian talks about the WTO, and the Georgian party has repeatedly stated that Russia's agreement of April 16 is an obstacle in these talks," Minister Yakobashvili has declared.

According to his version, this agreement prejudices Georgia's rights. "We'll object to Russia's accession to the WTO. This is my forecast. Should Russia's position remain unchanged, why should Georgia change hers? How can we progress with our trade relations, when the neighbouring country, by breaking previous arrangements, lifts sanctions from the unrecognized republic?" Mr Yakobashvili asked.

We remind you that the forthcoming round of WTO Georgia-Russia negotiations will take place on May 26-28 in Geneva. This was reported by Kakha Bendukidze, head of the Georgian Governmental Office, who is now in Washington. The previous round of negotiations that was planned for late April failed for refusal of the Georgian party.