Negotiations on Russia's accession to the WTO lasted almost 18 years. And finally, on August 22, 2012, the protocol on the entry of the Russian Federation into this international organization came into force. However, this event caused an ambiguous reaction from both ordinary people and authoritative experts.
Many experts protested against Russia's accession to the World Trade Organization: economists, financiers, deputies, agricultural producers, representatives of most industries. However, their arguments were not heard by the Russian government. Now the citizens of the country will have to see in practice whether the representatives of the expert community were right or wrong when they drew attention to the negative consequences of Russia's membership in the WTO.
So, what complex of problems can weigh heavily on the shoulders of Russians after the recent move by the government? Analysts of the WTO-Inform Center and the Institute of Globalization and Social Movements have calculated that in 8 years the Russian economy will lose about 26 trillion rubles due to the country's accession to the WTO. This figure includes not only direct losses, but also lost opportunities for growth. Domestic prices for energy resources, including gas, will begin to rise.
According to the pessimistic forecasts of researchers, by 2020, about 4.4 million Russians will become unemployed. This primarily concerns those who work in the field of aircraft and automobile construction, production of textiles, footwear and leather, sugar, electronics, etc. These industries will not be able to withstand competition.
According to the agreements signed, Russia will have to reduce import duties on foreign goods. The consequence of this step will be that these goods will become unprofitable to produce in the Russian Federation. This will affect agriculture most of all. Producers of grain, pork, milk and poultry will suffer. After all, foreign farmers are much better equipped than Russian farmers. And they receive much more subsidies from their states and on more favorable terms.
Ultimately, all this will affect consumers: domestic agriculture will come to a final decline, low-quality imported products will be imported into the country, including frozen meat and dangerous genetically modified vegetables. The fact is that according to agreements within the WTO, Russia will no longer be able to impose import bans and even label food with GMOs. All this can lead to an increase in morbidity and mortality among Russians.
The expert community fears that Russia will lose its economic sovereignty. Transnational corporations will be able to receive Russian raw materials at low prices, while modern technologies, which our country hopes to receive, will not be provided.
