Press releases

VITEBSK, 16 October (BelTA) – A series of regional roundtable sessions to discuss Belarus’ accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) kicks off on 16 October. The first event of this series will be held in Vitebsk, BelTA learned from the Vitebsk Oblast Executive Committee.

Taking part in the roundtable session in Vitebsk on 16 October will be international and domestic experts, specialists in foreign trade and WTO, representatives of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the UNDP Office in Belarus, the Vitebsk Oblast Executive Committee, the local government, the local business community and business associations, and higher learning institutions. Top on the agenda will be WTO accession procedure, status and consequences, as well as terms of operation in the WTO space. A book WTO In The Interests Of Enterprises will be presented at the session. The book was written in 2018 to set forth basic norms and rules of GATT/WTO and explain their application in foreign economic relations of companies.

At present, accession to the World Trade Organization is one of the priorities of Belarus’ foreign trade policy. WTO membership will enable the country to secure stable and predictable terms of trade with other countries, while foreign investors and manufacturers will be able to use generally accepted rules and regulations while operating in Belarus.

Similar events are to be held in all the oblast capitals in October. The final meeting will take place in Minsk on 2 November. The roundtable sessions are part of the project "Assisting the Government of the Republic of Belarus in Accession to the World Trade Organization through Strengthening National Institutional Capacity and Expertise (Phase 5)". The project is funded by the Government of Russia and is implemented by the UNDP in partnership with the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.