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#11 - JRL 2006-256 - JRL Home
Moscow Times
November 14, 2006
Editorial
Trying to Take the Politics Out of Trade

Friday's announcement that Washington and Moscow had reached agreement on terms for Russian accession to the World Trade Organization has been a long time in coming. Given that Vietnam is poised to join the international trade body and China has already been a member for five years, it is difficult to understand why Russia should remain outside. It's about time Russia was granted entrance.

The most obvious remaining question about the whole process is: Why did it take so long? The troubling answer is: politics.

Although Washington has denied suggestions -- often from Russian negotiators -- that noneconomic issues were at the root of its reticence in negotiations with Moscow, the run-up to Friday's agreement took place against a background of constant hints that political issues were at stake. Speculation has swirled in recent weeks that the United States was offering a deal in exchange for Russian concessions on Iran and North Korea. Earlier, it was rumored that the United States had reservations about the state of Russian democracy.

U.S. denials of a political agenda echo protests from the Russian side whenever it is accused of using energy exports as a political weapon. Gas prices are lower for neighboring countries that have friendly relations with Russia, however, suggesting that the Kremlin views gas prices as a political lever at least to some degree.

The United States and Russia have repeatedly mixed economic issues with political concerns .

A sense of the difficulties that mixing the issues can cause was found in the tension that surrounded the Group of Eight summit held in St. Petersburg in July. Russia gained full membership in the G8 in 1997 after U.S. President Bill Clinton proposed membership as a palliative to counter Moscow's opposition to NATO enlargement. Ahead of the July summit, politicians in some G8 countries seemed to forget this and loudly questioned whether Russia belonged in a club of developed democratic nations.

Fortunately, the requirements for WTO membership are clearer than those for the G8, and Russia's inclusion might actually help end some of the mixing of issues. With Russia in, the U.S. Congress will need to ditch the Jackson-Vanik amendment, which was passed in 1974 as a trade measure against countries with nonmarket economies that restricted emigration rights. If it doesn't get rid of the amendment, the United States would be in violation of WTO rules. Political intransigence would then be forced to yield to economic reality.