Econ ministry, business to talk protective measures in WTO accession until end-Apr - Nabiullina
NOVO-OGAREVO. March 12 (Interfax) - Russia's Economic Development Ministry will wrap up a series of consultations with the business community on possible protective measures in the context of the country's joining the World Trade Organization before the end of next month, Economic Development Minister Elvira Nabiullina said during a meeting with Prime Minister and President-elect Vladimir Putin in Novo-Ogarevo.
"Business is serious about the efficiency and timeliness of measure-adoption, because if we ratify [WTO accession agreements] in the middle of the year, then all the measures will have to be taken by that time. The situation in different sectors varies, even within sectors by product type, so we've decided to conduct detailed, narrow-sector meetings and will be continuing them. There are thirty-eight seminars with business in the regions scheduled for before the end of April," Nabiullina said.
Meetings have already held with representatives of the agro-industrial complex, metallurgy, machine-building, agricultural machine-building, chemicals, petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, timbering, and furniture sectors and light industry, including the textile and apparel industries, the minister said.
During the consultations, risks a company sees in association with possible import growth, necessary measures of support, and also possible help from the government in entering markets abroad, she said.
Discrimination on foreign markets "against our companies is fairly sizeable," Nabiullina said. "We now have an instrument - via the WTO we can protect our interests - that, of course, has to be done," she said.
Nabiullina went on to say that there is insufficient communication, information awareness, and explanation. "Along with these seminars we agreed on issue sufficiently accessible brochures, because that volume of reportage only specialists can read through. We will make sector-based explanatory materials together with the Agriculture Ministry - there are a lot of issues concerning agriculture," she said.
Jointly with the Eurasian Economic Community (EurAsEC), possible support mechanisms that the WTO has are being worked up: protective and antidumping measures, she said.
Also, Nabiullina said, support for companies by means of state procurement is planned. "We have prepared an order, it is on the way - in a month, I think, it will take force - precisely concerning preferences in these sectors," the minister said.