Azerbaijan, Baku, Nov. 23 / Trend E. Kosolapova/
Kazakhstan could become a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2012, Kazakh Prime Minister Karim Massimov said, KazTAG reported.
"We hope that our country will join the WTO in the next 12 months," Massimov said at the third Economic Forum Expert-100-Kazakhstan on Wednesday.
According to Massimov, Kazakhstan's principles on global competitiveness and integration into the global processes do not contradict creating the Common Economic Space, rather complete each other.
The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an organization that intends to supervise and liberalize international trade. The organization officially commenced on January 1, 1995, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which commenced in 1948.
The organization deals with regulation of trade between participating countries, provides a framework for negotiating and formalizing trade agreements.
The WTO has 153 members, representing more than 97 percent of the world's population, and 30 observers, most seeking membership.