Russia to suspend some of its WTO agreements

MOSCOW, Sept 1 (AFP) Russia will suspend some of its agreements made during its bid to become a member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Interfax quoted Prime Minister Vladimir Putin as saying yesterday. brPutin said the deals covering elements in the agriculture and manufacturing sectors are unfair, but vowed to return to the agreements once Russia becomes a member of the Geneva-based body, according to the news agency. brNot being a member of this organisation, we do not receive anything positive in return. This situation goes against our interests in certain sectors of the Russian economy, particularly agriculture, he said. brWe will suspend a number of programmes, but we will return to them as soon as we become a full-fledged member of the WTO, he added. brPutin said the suspension concerns red meat, poultry and manufacturing. brHe also reiterated Moscow's intent to join the WTO. brHaving considered the reasons for and against, we feel it is necessary to follow this direction and we will advance in this direction, he said. brLast week, Putin indicated that Russia would suspend some of its WTO agreements and Wednesday the Kremlin said it was planning to severely cut imports of pork and chicken meat, which were agreed three years ago. brRussia has been knocking at the WTO's door since 1993, just two years after the collapse of the Soviet Union and during the first flush of the country's embrace with capitalism.