Georgia, Tbilisi, April 28 / Trend N.Kirtzkhalia /
Berne will host the Georgian-Russian negotiations on Russia's accession to the WTO on April 28-29.
The Russian side initiated the start of such negotiations. The first meeting was held in Switzerland in March. This was a preliminary meeting, the details of which the sides have agreed to keep undisclosed.
Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister Nino Kalandadze told Trend that Georgia has placed several conditions on Russia's WTO membership agreement.
"The most important among them is control over the borders in the occupied territories. This is our fundamental requirement emanating from the WTO Charter," she said adding that it is a "purely economic" requirement of Tbilisi.
"We stand for Russia's accession to the WTO and do not intend to block this process. But we have our own state interests," Kalandadze said.
The United States backs Russia's membership in the WTO, but Georgia has reasons for legitimate concerns, which Russia ought to share, the U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Tina Kaidanow told Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergi Kapanadze earlier at a joint briefing in Tbilisi.
