G8 pledges support for completion of Russia’s accession to WTO

In the final declaration of the G8 summit in Deauville, the leaders have confirmed their commitment to help Russia join the WTO by the end of the year.

“Russia’s G8 partners hail the significant progress which Russia has achieved on its way to complete its accession to the WTO and confirm their commitment to actively cooperate with Russia in order to complete the process in 2011,” the document says. On Thursday, president Dmitry Medvedev told journalists that they agreed with US president Barack Obama  decision to step up talks on the issue. “I hope we will be able to finalize the process, bring it into the final phase, but further stimulus is required,” he said.In his turn, Obama added that both Russian and American negotiators are doing their best to accelerate the process of Russia’s joining the World Trade Organization, specifically pointing out the benefits it will bring to both Russian and the global economy. “We think that Russia's accession to the WTO will be good for the Russian economy, will be good for the U.S. economy, will be good for the world economy, and we are confident that we can get this done," Obama said. “It will be a key building block in expanding trade and commerce.”

Middle East settlement

The G8 leaders have also supported president Obama’s position on one of the central issues facing the Middle East which he announced last week. He had said that a two-state solution should be based on the 1967 borders.“We express unanimous support for president Barack Obama’s stance on the Israeli-Palestinian settlement which he announced on May 19, 2011,” the declaration reads. The document also stresses the need to resume peace talks, which it says are the only way to find a solution to the problem.

“Gaddafi must leave”

Another key issue on which the participants of the summit agreed was their common position on Libya.“Gaddafi and the Libyan government have not fulfilled their commitments to defend the Libyan people and have lost legitimacy. There is no place for him in a future, democratic Libya. He must leave,” G8 leaders are convinced.They hailed the road map put forward by Libya’s Transitional National Council and stressed the important role of the United Nations, the Arab Leagues and the African Union in the search for a “long-term political solution based on the lawful demands of the Libyan people”.

Further measures against Damascus on the table

The summit participants  have called on Syria to stop the violence and start the reform process, otherwise the G8 “will consider further measures” against it. “The Syrian leadership should immediately stop using force against the Syrian people and release political prisoners,” G8 leaders said in a statement stressing that only dialogue and fundamental reforms will ensure the long-term security and prosperity of the country. It should be noted that the G8 summit is not legally binding, but rather outlines a common position of the member states on the above issues.