Trade talks in disarray as Western nations stop trading with Russia
"WTO members do not want to negotiate with Russia," Hamid Mamdouh, an ex-WTO official and trade lawyer in Geneva, told Reuters. "The longer the war drags on, the more disruptive it will be to the work of the WTO."
• Trade delegates now fear meeting scheduled for June 13 will fail to yield deals
• US and G7 nations revoked Russia's 'permanent normal trade relations' status
Western nations are reportedly refusing to engage with Russia in trade negotiations at Geneva's World Trade Organization (WTO).
"WTO members do not want to negotiate with Russia," Hamid Mamdouh, an ex-WTO official and trade lawyer in Geneva, told Reuters. "The longer the war drags on, the more disruptive it will be to the work of the WTO."
The coordinated move already has seized up multiple sectors in Russia.
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Reuters report said trade delegates now fear a meeting between trade ministers scheduled for June 13 will fail to yield deals.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent economic isolation resulting from Western sanctions are the latest setback to WTO efforts to restore the rule-based trade system worldwide against a tide of growing protectionism.
The United States and the G7 member nations have already announced to revoke Russia's "permanent normal trade relations" status, under which countries agree to treat each other as equal trading partners.
However, Russia's WTO membership needs to be canceled to revoke the trade relation entirely.
Russia has accused the West of "a complete dismantling" of the world's trading system.
