Ministers are tomorrow expected to put Russia on track to become a member of the World Trade Organisation in 2012. Countless hours of negotiations, spanning 18 years and several generations of ministers, are nearing a successful conclusion. Yet doubts remain. Have the delays not largely been due to Russia’s own actions, ask WTO members? The Russians too have doubts: will the benefits of membership offset the discomfort of WTO-imposed disciplines and accountability? Amid all the uncertainty on the Russian stage, does WTO membership still make sense? My answer is: yes, yes and yes.
各国部长将在周五的会议上，把俄罗斯送上2012年成为世界贸易组织(WTO)成员国的列车。经过长达18年的努力，几代部长更迭之后，已经花费了无数个小时的谈判终于接近了一个成功的终点。然而疑虑仍然存在。WTO各成员国会问，谈判久拖不决很大程度上不是因为俄罗斯的自身举动而造成的吗？俄罗斯也心存疑虑：加入WTO得到的利益能否弥补WTO强加于身的规则和问责要求？在俄罗斯局势如此不稳的情况下，加入WTO是否还有意义？我对这三个问题的答案都是肯定的。