Russian Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov attended on Thursday the meeting of trade ministers of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in the Thai capital of Bangkok, which was dedicated to the preparations for the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference in June.
"Food security is indeed one of the key issues on the agenda of the 12th Ministerial Conference. However, decisions on this issue require an objective assessment of the real causes of the food crisis. Unilateral sanctions against Russia — one of the largest suppliers of food and fertilizers in the world — including in financial transactions and logistics, contribute greatly to the deterioration of the situation. Russia is ready to actively participate in finding joint solutions. But that process cannot be unilateral," Reshetnikov said at the APEC meeting.
The minister noted that most APEC economies agree on the importance of the WTO and the need for further efforts to improve its effectiveness.
"However, the words of some economists go out of tune with their actions. Their unilateral and politically motivated trade restrictions are a threat to the multilateral trading system. A massive wave of violations of WTO rules 'under the guise' of exceptions due to national security concerns is a serious dismantlement of the organization," the minister said.
Reshetnikov added that WTO members should focus on the said "trade problems" if they want to improve the situation in food and energy markets.
The Russian ministry said earlier on Saturday that the Russian delegation left the meeting during the report of US Trade Representative Katherine Tai. Before that, delegations of Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, and the United States left the APEC meeting hall during Reshetnikov's report.