In a bid to enter the World Trade Organization, Russia has to sign bilateral deals with all the 58 members of the Working Group on its accession. Until Georgia's decision, the United States was the last country to sign a WTO deal, and Russia hoped to sign it in the next few days.
"Until all vital issues have been resolved in relation to discriminatory customs regime practiced by Russia against Georgian exports, Georgia will not back Russia's WTO bid," Gela Bezhuashvili said.
Russia closed a checkpoint, Verkhny Lars, on the border with Georgia for reconstruction July 8. The South Caucasus state has protested against the move, saying it was an "unfriendly act."
Bezhuashvili said that the Georgian government had decided to resume negotiations with Russia on its WTO bid and sent letters to Russian officials and the global trade body. Russia's economics ministry said that it had received no letters.
Bezhuashvili said Georgia had opted to withdraw from the WTO agreement with Russia in protest against illegitimate checkpoints operating on Russia's border with Georgia's unrecognized South Ossetian and Abkhazian republics after the only legal checkpoint - Kazbegi-Verkhny Lars - had been closed indefinitely.
The Georgian minister accused Russia of failing to meet its obligations under a bilateral WTO agreement signed May 28, 2004.
The Russian Ministry of Economic Development and Trade said Georgia was using the WTO deal as an instrument of achieving its political goals.
"All the issues that Georgia is trying to resolve with us lie outside the competence of the WTO," a ministry official said. "And Georgia is making a mistake by trying to resolve them using WTO mechanisms."
