Tashkent, Moscow To Talk Uzbekistan's Accession To WTO In December- Foreign Trade Ministry

TASHKENT (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 27th September, 2021) The issue of Uzbekistan joining the World Trade Organization (WTO) is planned to be discussed by the Uzbek-Russian working group in December, a source in the Uzbek Ministry of Investments and Foreign Trade told Sputnik on Monday.

On Sunday, the co-chairmen of the Russian-Uzbek intergovernmental commission, Russian Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov and Uzbek Deputy Prime Minister for Investments and Foreign Economic Affairs, Minister of Investments and Foreign Trade Sardor Umurzakov, had a meeting devoted to the discussion of new priority directions of the bilateral cooperation, according to the Uzbek ministry.

"The parties agreed to hold a meeting of the working group on Uzbekistan's accession to the WTO in December," a source said, adding, that the Russian side expressed readiness to provide Uzbekistan with expert support.

In 1994, Uzbekistan joined the WTO's General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade as an observer, and in 1998, a work negotiating group was set up on the country's accession to the organization. In 2019, Uzbekistan submitted an updated memorandum on the foreign trade regime to the WTO.

Uzbekistan is willing to join the WTO to obtain the privileges of a developing economy, as the country's foreign ministry suggests.