ST. PETERSBURG, June 17. /TASS/. Russia is not going to withdraw from the World Trade Organization (WTO), the International Monetary Fud (IMF), and the World Health Organization (WHO) so far, but it has questions to their work, Valentina Matviyenko, speaker of Russia’s Federation Council, or upper parliament house, said on Friday.
"A range of international organizations are losing their goals and missions they were once established for because of the colossal pressure. It gives us grounds to audit the activities of these organizations and, what is most important, the reasons and possibilities of our membership in such organizations. So far, I think that our withdrawal is out of the question because there is still room for cooperation," she said in an interview with TASS on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.
She noted that Russia has some questions to the work of these organizations. Thus, she recalled that the World Health Organization has not yet registered the Russian coronavirus vaccine. Moreover, Russia has not heard WTO’s "loud voice" concerning the illegal sanctions, which "are ruining the global economy," she noted.
"We still have a question. But as long as we see reasons for continuing cooperation, as long as there is room for dialogue, we will continue to cooperate. Life will show," she stressed.
The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum organized by the Roscongress Foundation is running from June 15 to 18. This year’s forum is dubbed: ‘New Opportunities in a New World’. The SME Forum, the Creative Business Forum, the Drug Security Forum, the SPIEF Junior Dialogue and SPIEF Sport Week are also going to be part of the SPIEF event. TASS serves as the event’s official photo hosting agency and the information partner.