. /.RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/REG/GEN/M/10
28 May 2003
(03-2872)
Committee on Regional Trade Agreements
 Thirty-Fourth Session
FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS BETWEEN GEORGIA AND THE
RUSSIAN FEDERATION, ARMENIA, AZERBAIJAN, UKRAINE, TURKMENISTAN,
AND KAZAKHSTAN
Note on the Meeting of 3 April 2003
Chairman:  Dr. V. Notis (Greece)
1. The meeting was convened in document WTO/AIR/2056/Rev.1.
2. Under Agenda Items C.XI-XVI of its Thirty-Fourth Session, the Committee on Regional
Trade Agreements (hereinafter CRTA or the Committee) took up the second round of examination of
the following regional trade agreements (RTAs):
- Free Trade Agreement between Georgia and the Russian Federation
- Free Trade Agreement between Georgia and Armenia
- Free Trade Agreement between Georgia and Azerbaijan
- Free Trade Agreement between Georgia and Ukraine
- Free Trade Agreement between Georgia and Turkmenistan
- Free Trade Agreement between Georgia and Kazakhstan
3. The Chairman said that this was the second round of examination of these six Agreements.
The previous examination had taken place in June 2002, with the corresponding minutes circulated in
document WT/REG/GEN/M/8.  He proposed that the six Agreements be examined jointly by the
Committee.  Given that only one WTO Member wa s the common denominator to those Agreements,
and their similarities in many respects, it was important to avoid unnecessary repetitions.  He recalled
that that way of proceeding would have no effect on the examinations per se , as each Agreement
would be judged on its own merit and would have it s own report with its own conclusions.  He added
that the questions and replies had been circulated as documents WT/REG118,119,120,121,122,123/4,
respectively.
4. The representative of Georgia said that it might be helpful for Members if he were to
comment on the history of these Agreements concluded by Georgia.  Georgia, which had been faced
with the severe consequences of the disruption of traditional trading links with the former Soviet
Republics in the early 1990s which had resulted in a sharp decline in productivity, capacity, trade
flows and economic welfare, had been trying to revive and strengthen trade ties with its traditionalpartner countries based on the principles of equality and mutual comparative advantage.  He
underlined that the major objective in concluding bilateral RTAs with these countries had been to
remove obstacles to bilateral trade thus ensuring the free movement of goods and making trade more
transparent and predictable.  These RTAs concluded by Georgia represented a first generation of
Agreements; accordingly, he acknowledged that they were not perfect as they lacked comprehensivelegal aspects regulating international trade.  He added that the Georgian Parliament had ratified the
Agreement between the states of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the Protocol ofWT/REG/GEN/M/10
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Amendment to this Agreement on 6 December 2002.  Accordingly, Georgia had become a party to the
CIS Free Trade Agreement and a notification had been recently sent to the WTO.
5. The representative of the United States said that her delegation had not had enough time to
examine these Agreements in detail, but she had obse rved that there was not sufficient information on
tariff lines.  She asked on what percentage of tariff lines at the eight-digit HS level would all duties beeliminated.   The representative of Georgia replied that trade data at the four-digit level had already
been provided, but that he would do his best to provide data at the eight-digit level.
6. The Chairman said that it appeared that a number of questions relating to the examination of
the six Agreements between Georgia and the Russ ian Federation, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Ukraine,
Turkmenistan, and Kazakhstan were still pending.  He invited delegations wishing to submit further
questions to do so before the end of July and that the Parties should furnish replies before the end of
October.  The examination of these Agreements would then be taken up at a future Session of theCommittee.
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