Russia handed in their application for membership in WTO as far back as in 1993. More that 17 years have passed, and still no accession of Russia is in sight, although officials on both sides claim that soon everything will be settled. Last year Russia withdrew its application, and proclaimed they want to apply jointly with its partner countries Kazakhstan and Belarus. So far it is not known who will negociate on behalf of the three countries.

Russia's main export, as we all know, is oil and gas (2/3), and this trade is not covered by the WTO rules. Russian import of consumer goods is quite big (9 bln USD in 2008), and there are very many people involved in this trade who would rather keep the old system, rather than having to adapt to more transparent WTO regulations and tariffs. These guys have to give up a lot, probably more than they are willing to, if Russia enters WTO.

What will happen further is hard to say, but if Mr Putin reenters the presidential chair next year, it is very likely that Russia's accession into WTO will be either postponed or abandoned altogether. His line is far more protectionistic than his opponent, and after all - Russia doesn't actually need to be a member of the WTO to be economically successful, especially when the main income comes from hydrocarbons. There will however come a time when export of oil and gas does not generate such huge wealth, and Russia will soon find that it has no possibility to be on the outside.