MOSCOW, February 17. /TASS/. The World Trade Organization (WTO) has been slowed down by the United States and, apparently, its operation has come to a halt, but Russia should not quit the organization, Russian Economic Development Minister Maksim Oreshkin said on the Russian television channel Rossiya’24 on Sunday.
"The United States is playing actively on the global arena, breaching all the principles that have evolved over the recent years," the minister said. "[Not long ago] an extensive meeting of the WTO ministers was held, but the organization is not de facto functioning now. All the processes have come to a halt."
The Russian minister added that "hypothetically, it cannot be ruled out" that the WTO will cease to exist. However, the world "is not so disintegrated because the chains of added value have folded up for years and decades. So they cannot be so simply destroyed in a year."
Oreshkin pointed out that Russia should not withdraw from the WTO.
"Should Russia quit the WTO, our steelmakers along with some other companies that export their goods might face a sharp deterioration in the conditions for trade with our key partners, so the situation will aggravate significantly."
"Thus, we will not benefit in this field. Therefore, the WTO is an absolute blessing for Russia and one should know how to work there, one should know how to act there," Oreshkin concluded.