Russian accession to the WTO: an assessment

A senior World Bank economist presents a study focusing oil issues controlling Russia's accession to the WTO in 2007. Tile paper discusses the principal reform commitments that Russia has made in an effort to become a member of the organization and addresses the question of whether the country faces excessive demands due to political considerations. While exploring such issues as potential relations with foreign exporters and investors, the author summarizes the relevant parts of his recent joint study of Russian import tariffs that casts a new light on a complex aspect of international trade. Among other problems relating to Russia's entry, he discusses in some detail branch banking and the tradedistorting subsidies in agriculture. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: F13, F40, O19. 3 tables, 26 references. Key words: Russia, World Trade Organization, Russian economy, import tariffs, Russian banking, agricultural subsidies, Jackson-Vanik, Russian-American trade, China's WTO membership.