President Vladimir Putin has said that sanctions against Russia directly violate World Trade Organization (WTO) principles, and that Russia will continue to defend its economy with protective measures.
The sanctions violate the main principles of equal access for all
WTO members to economic activity and access to goods and services
in the market, Putin said at a meeting with advisers in the
Kremlin on Thursday.
“The limitations introduced against our country are nothing
but a violation by some of our partners of the basic principles
of the WTO,” the President said, adding that sanctions
“undermine free enterprise competition.”
On September 12,
the US and EU expanded sanctions against Russia
aimed at hurting Russia’s main industry – oil. The US and EU have
led sanctions against Russia, along with Japan, Australia,
Switzerland, and others over Moscow’s alleged meddling in the
Ukraine conflict.
READ MORE: Russia to appeal against US, EU
sanctions to WTO
The best way for Russia
to counter these unfair advantages is to develop its domestic
market, the President said.
“In response, we took
protective measures, and I would like to stress that they are
protective; they are not the result of our desire to punish any
of our partners or influence their decision in any way.”
Russia introduced protective measures over food
supplies on August 7 in response to Western sanctions. The
Kremlin and White House sanctions tit-for-tat has been escalating
since March, when Crimea voted to rejoin Russia.
The food ban is due to only last a year, but at today’s meeting
the President said that Russia needs to focus on increasing its
market competitiveness over the next eighteen months to two
years.
One of Russia’s main
competitive advantages is its huge domestic market, and it should
be filled with more Russian-made products, Putin said.
The President said that Russia’s decision to join the WTO in 2012
was a difficult transition for the country, but that it raised
economic standards.
At the meeting President Putin laid out a list of economic
priorities for the Russian state. At the top are developing the
infrastructure, boosting lending, continuing to develop the
agricultural and technology sectors, and increasing overall
competition.
Russia joined the WTO in 2012 after nearly two decades of
back and forth negotiations on the conditions for entry.
Article source: http://rt.com/business/188772-sanctions-russia-protect-economy-putin/
Speak Your Mind
You must be logged in to post a comment.