Source: PRESS RELEASE, 7/6/11

 

The Honorable Sergey I. Kislyak

Ambassador

Embassy of the Russian Federation to the United States of America

2650 Wisconsin Avenue, NW

Washington, DC  20007

Dear Ambassador Kislyak:

I am writing concerning our nations’ ongoing efforts to negotiate an agreement to effectuate Russia’s accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). Russia’s accession to the WTO will benefit both our countries and strengthen our trade and investment relations.  Russia has the 10^th largest economy in the world, a population of 142 million, and a growing middle class.  It was America’s 37^th largest export market in 2010.  Of great interest to our constituents is the potential for increased U.S. exports of agricultural products, particularly beef, pork, poultry, and dairy products. 

Today, Russia has a number of requirements on its books that are fundamentally inconsistent with the core provisions of the WTO SPS Agreement and which it has used at will to restrict imports of U.S. products.  These requirements include antiquated, prescriptive rules for slaughter plant hygiene, a zero tolerance for the presence of antibiotics in meat, and non-science-based standards for controlling food-borne pathogens.

These barriers have caused U.S. exports to drop.  For example, in 2010, U.S. ag exports to Russia totaled $1.14 billion.  However, this level was less than the $1.43 billion exported in 2009, and I understand it reflects the cost of sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) and other barriers.  Notably, in 2009, Russia was the largest market for U.S. poultry meat exports, which totaled more than $762 million.  That said, in 2010, U.S. poultry exports decreased to $316 million in the wake of new Russian regulations on poultry imports that I understand effectively halted U.S. poultry exports until late last year. 

Dairy shows a similar disturbing trend.  Russia is the world’s largest dairy importer, and U.S. dairy sales to Russia climbed to a record $83 million last year before the Russian market closed to U.S. dairy exporters in September 2010. 

Pork sales have dropped as well.  I understand that U.S. pork sales have not only been reduced by Russia’s non-science-based SPS restrictions, but also have been negatively affected by Russia’s unilateral reduction of tariff rate quotas.  These actions combined have resulted in a 60 percent decline in U.S. pork exports to Russia since 2008, when U.S. pork sales totaled over 200,000 metric tons.

These experiences illustrate the great need for Russia to build confidence by ensuring that the terms of its accession require Russia to:  (1) abide by science-based SPS rules that are transparent, based upon international standards, and fully implemented; and (2) agree to the largest import quotas with the lowest in-quota and out-of-quota rates possible.  Accession to the WTO will obligate Russia to bind its agricultural tariffs and thereby add predictability to our trade relationship and create new export opportunities for American farmers, ranchers, and producers.  However, such gains cannot be fully realized in the absence of effective SPS terms that limit arbitrary restrictions on imports of U.S. beef, dairy, pork, poultry, and other agricultural products. 

As Russia takes steps to join the recently created Custom Union with Belarus and Kazakhstan, I understand that Russia is working with the other two countries to adopt new technical regulations that will replace its existing requirements.  I hope that Russia will use the process of developing and implementing these new Customs Union regulations to put its requirements on a sound scientific footing and to bring itself into compliance with its future obligations as a member of the WTO. 

I hope you will encourage senior Russian government officials to engage with the U.S. Congress on why Russia’s WTO accession is in both our countries’ interests and to seek to address trade as well as foreign policy and human rights issues that have been raised in Congress.  Thank you for your prompt attention to this important matter.

Sincerely,

         Walter B. Jones

                 Member of Congress