Industrial and agricultural subsidies

The Russian Federation would eliminate all its industrial subsidies programmes or modify them so that any subsidy provided would not be contingent upon exportation or upon the use of domestic over imported goods.

The total trade distorting agricultural support would not exceed USD 9 billion in 2012 and would be gradually reduced to USD 4.4 billion by 2018.

The VAT exemption applied to certain domestic agricultural products would be eliminated upon accession.

Pricing of energy

Producers and distributors of natural gas in the Russian Federation would operate on the basis of normal commercial considerations, based on recovery of costs and profit. The Russian Federation would continue to regulate price supplies to households and other non-commercial users, based on domestic social policy considerations.

Sanitary and phytosanitary measures (SPS) and technical barriers to trade (TBT)

All SPS measures would be developed and applied in the Russian Federation and the Custom Union, in accordance with the WTO Agreement.

The Russian Federation would ensure that all legislation related to technical regulations, standards and conformity assessment procedures complies with the WTO TBT Agreement. 

Trade-related investment measures

The Russian Federation would ensure that all laws, regulations and other measures related to the Agreement on Trade-Related Investment Measures would be consistent with the WTO provisions.

Protection of trade-related intellectual property

The Russian Federation would fully apply the provisions of the WTO Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights including provisions for enforcement, without recourse to any transitional period.

Transparency

The provisions of the WTO Agreement would be applied uniformly throughout the Russian Federation territory, including in regions engaging in frontier traffic, special economic zones and other areas where special regimes for tariffs, taxes and regulations could be established. 

Functioning of the Custom Union between Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus

The Custom Union between Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus was created on 1 January 2010. All customs borders were removed between the three countries on 1 July 2011. From 1 January 2012, the three states would have a single economic space. The Russian Federation would publish any Custom Union legislation before adoption and would provide a reasonable period of time for WTO members and all stakeholders to comment to the competent Custom Union Body.

Working on the text

Ex.1. SKIMMING:

a. Read the headline and the first sentence of each paragraph of the text.  Pair up to discuss the topic of the article.

b. Read the first paragraph and the last paragraph of the text. Then work in pairs to discuss the contents of the piece.

c. Read the text. Get into pairs to discuss the contents of the piece. 

Ex.2. SCANNING:

a. While scanning the text find the answers for content-specific questions given by the teacher.

b. While scanning the text pick out the sentences containing the key words given by the teacher.

Ex.3. READING: Read and translate the text “Russia’s accession to the WTO”.

Ex.4. TEXT QUESTIONS: Look back at the text and write down some questions you would like to ask the class about the text.

• Share your questions with other classmates / groups.

• Ask your partner / group your questions.

Ex.5. DISCUSSION: What was the aim of Russia’s accession to the WTO? Talk about this with your partner(s). Change partners and share your ideas. Use the words from the table below.

_____ Russia’s accession _____ important commitments _____ market access for goods and services _____  general commitments

_____ industrial and agricultural subsidies _____ pricing of energy _____ sanitary and phytosanitary measures _____ trade-related investment measures

Ex.6. TRUE / FALSE: guess if a-h sentences below are true (T) or false (F):

a.	As part of the accession accord, Russia has agreed to undertake a series of important commitments to further open its trade regime and accelerate its integration in the world economy.	T / F
b.	As part of the accession, Russia concluded 300 bilateral agreements on market access for services and 57 on market access for goods.	T / F
c.	Export duties would be fixed for over 700 tariff lines, including certain products in the sectors of fish and crustaceans, mineral fuels and oils, raw hides and skins, wood, pulp and paper and base metals.	T / F
d.	Licenses would be required for imports of more than a dozen encryption technology products (the list includes electronic digital signature devices, personal smart-cards or wireless radio equipment).	T / F
e.	Products including alcohol, wood and meat would be subject to measures requiring their declaration and/or entry at designated customs checkpoints.	T / F
f.	The VAT exemption applied to certain domestic agricultural products wouldn’t be eliminated upon accession.	T / F
g.	The Russian Federation would ensure that all laws, regulations and other measures related to the Agreement on Trade-Related Investment Measures would be consistent with the WTO provisions.	T / F
h.	The Russian Federation is not obliged to publish any Custom Union legislation before adoption and wouldn’t provide a reasonable period of time for WTO members and all stakeholders to comment to the competent Custom Union Body.	T / F

Ex.7. WORD SEARCH: Look in your dictionaries / computer to find collocations, other meanings, information, synonyms … for the words ‘accession accord’ and ‘policy considerations’.

accession accord

policy considerations

• Share your findings with your partners.

• Make questions using the words you found.

• Ask your partner / group your questions.

Ex.8. VOCABULARY: Circle the words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

Ex.9.TEST EACH OTHER: Look at the words below. With your partner, try to recall how they were used in the text:

quantitative restrictions, quotas, bans, permits, prior authorization requirements, licensing requirements, justified, WTO provisions, dozen encryption technology products, experts’ evaluations, approvals, licenses, related products, import license.

accession accord, to undertake, important commitments, trade regime, accelerate, world economy, transparent and predictable, foreign investment, fully apply, WTO provisions, transitional periods.

Ex.10. GOOGLE SEARCH: Type "Russia’s accession to WTO " into Google. Look at the websites, and/or read additional articles on this topic. Discuss or write an essay about your findings.

Ex.11. TEXT RENDERING: Render the text “Russia’s accession to WTO”