APEC summit will accelerate the integration of Russia with APR

On September 7, 2012, Igor Shuvalov, the First Vice Prime Minister of Russia said at the APEC business summit in Vladivostok, that in the forthcoming five - ten years the trade volume between Russia and Asia Pacific Region (APR) countries may exceed the turnover with the EU. Therefore, there is a need to accelerate integration and cooperation with the APR countries.
2012 will become for Russia the year of expanding its presence in the Asia Pacific Region. For a long time our country has been focusing on the economic development of trading relations with the European countries. Only now, Russia started to turn to APR. The accession to WTO became a strong incentive for integration with APR.

Currently, negotiations on establishing a free trade area with a number of APR countries are in progress. Thus, the negotiations with New Zealand are in the final stage. The issue of creating a free trade area with Vietnam is developed to a lesser extent. There is some progress in potential establishment of a free trade area with ASEAN.

 

Note that chairmanship of Russia in APEC Forum is focused on smooth integration in the system of APR economic relations. The results of our chairmanship are impressive without exaggeration; we have a lot to be proud of. In the first place, I mean the results of our initiatives and projects promotion. For example, Russia in the capacity of APEC Forum chairmanship has implemented the initiative on development a common approach to the Chapter on transparency in the Free Trade Agreement. This approach can be used as a model in further stages of integration.

 

In addition, Russia has proposed a number of specific amendments to structural reform monitoring, measures to improve the statistics, etc.

Another important aspect of Russia chairmanship in APEC is its focus on modernization and innovative development of the national economy in general, and Siberia and the Far East regions in particular, which are intended to become the appealing business centers along with Moscow and St. Petersburg. Business is attracted by opportunities. Creation of education, infrastructure opportunities is the milestone in the Far East regional development and the successful cooperation with other regions and countries.

 

V.V. Idrisova, Ph.D. in Economics, Researcher of Industrial Organization and Infrastructure Economics Department

Friday, 07.09.2012