1 Oct 2009 16:01

Customs Union may complete WTO talks in 18-24 mths

MOSCOW. Oct 1 (Interfax) - The Customs Union between Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan might complete talks on WTO entry in 18-24 months, the Russian Economic Development Ministry said.

"Our opinion is that it is realistic to complete this entire process in 18-24 months. That's a conservative estimate," Deputy Economic Development Minister Andrei Slepnev told journalists on Thursday. "There are no technical obstacles to completing the negotiations. As for political ones, that's another question," he said.

The Customs Union commission in Kazakhstan made the decision that negotiating process on the Customs Union entry into the WTO "Russia's commitments will be taken as a basis," he said.