On December 16th, 2011, an 18 year long negotiation process regarding Russia’s WTO membership was finally brought to an end. The WTO adopted Russia’s terms and conditions of entry and Pascal Lamy, Director-
General of the World Trade Organization, and Elvira Nabiullina, the Russian Minister of Economic Development, officially signed the protocol of accession at the Eighth Ministerial Conference in Geneva. Now the only remaining procedure is the ratification of the documents within the next 220 days in the Russian Federation’s Duma. Thirty days after notification, Russia will become a fully-fledged WTO member.

CASE Network E-briefs 01/2012: Russia’s Accession to the WTO: Impacts and Challenges