Baku, Azerbaijan, May 4
By Azad Hasanli - Trend:
Russia has officially expressed a desire to begin negotiations within the framework of Azerbaijan's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), the head of the negotiating group, Azerbaijani deputy foreign minister Mahmud Mammadguliyev told Trend May 4.
"A few days ago Russia officially approached us with a desire to start negotiations within the framework of Azerbaijan's accession to the WTO," he said. "We'll receive their suggestions, find out what areas of cooperation they are interested in, and we will conduct negotiations during the next meeting in Geneva."
The deputy minister said it was difficult to mention the date of the next round of negotiations on Azerbaijan's accession to the WTO. "At present, the member states of the working group on Azerbaijan continue submitting their questions and comments," said Mammadguliyev. "Questions come late, so it is too early to talk about the next round of negotiations."
He said that the time for further negotiations will be determined depending on the deep study of all the documents and questions coming from the WTO member countries.
Azerbaijan started the negotiations in 2004. Currently, the country is negotiating with more than 15 countries.
Negotiations are now completed, and the protocols signed with Turkey, the Sultanate of Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Georgia and Kyrgyzstan. The country is at the stage of signing the protocol with China and Moldova.
The last meeting of the working group was held in March 2015 in Geneva.
Azerbaijan has had an observer status at the WTO since 1997. A working group on Azerbaijan was established at the WTO Secretariat on July 16, 1997. Currently, it consists of 42 countries, including the United States, Brazil, China, India, Canada, Japan, etc. The list of the working group has expanded in April by Montenegro and Indonesia.
Edited by CN
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