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MOSCOW, April 13: Russia will lift its ban on US poultry imports from April 15, an Agriculture Ministry spokesman said on Saturday, ending a month-long stand-off that had strained Moscow’s ties with Washington.
The decision came less than a day after US President George W. Bush called Russian leader Vladimir Putin to urge an end to the dragging dispute.
Yes the ban will be lifted from April 15, the spokesman told Reuters.
Russian first imposed the ban on March 10 over health concerns, a move that coincided with Washington’s decision to slap hefty tariffs on steel imports into the United States, although neither side has publicly linked the two events.
Russia, the biggest buyer of US chicken and turkey meat, halted imports over concerns about antibiotics used in US poultry production and the disease-causing salmonella contamination.
US officials denied the United States was in breach of Russian sanitary standards and said the ban was designed to protect domestic producers at the cost of US exporters.
Poultry exports to Russia are big business, involving some 37 US states who last year exported more than one million tons of poultry meat worth $640 million to the country.
By resolving the dispute the two sides have removed an irritant in relations that threatened to overshadow a Putin-Bush summit in Moscow in six weeks’ time.
American trade officials had also said the poultry ban was making it more difficult to negotiate Russia’s entry into the World Trade Organization, which Putin has made a key priority.
WASHINGTON: US President George W. Bush told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday that he hoped to quickly settle a trade dispute over whether US poultry is safe to eat, the White House said.
Russia, the biggest buyer of US chicken and turkey meat, halted purchases one month ago citing concerns about antibiotics used in US poultry production and disease-causing salmonella contamination.
The action ignited suspicions among American farm groups that Russia was merely moving to protect its domestic poultry producers.
The March 10 ban has coincided with Russian anger at Washington’s plans to slap hefty tariffs on steel imports into the United States, although neither side has publicly linked the two trade disputes.
Bush’s telephone call to Putin came about six weeks before the two presidents are scheduled to meet in Moscow. A prolonged delay in lifting the ban could cast a shadow over the summit.
During the call, Bush expressed his hope that all those issues can be resolved quickly, a White House spokesman said.
Because US poultry exports are generated by some 37 US states, the trade dispute has garnered attention at the highest levels of government.
Russian Agriculture Minister Alexei Gordeyev said earlier on Friday that he has yet to be convinced that US poultry is safe to eat.
I’m not sure how long (a decision) will take, it may be made quickly, or take some days, Gordeyev told reporters in the Siberian town of Novosibirsk.
His top deputy, Sergei Dankvert, said Russia was only partly convinced its demands for safety guarantees had been met. Both said Russia wanted new consultations with US veterinarians.
After three weeks of negotiations with diplomats and veterinarians, Russia agreed to lift the ban on April 10, if Washington provided proof it had addressed the safety issues. But when the deadline arrived on Wednesday, Moscow extended the ban for two more days, saying it needed to study the documents Washington supplied.
A delegation of Russian veterinarians is currently in the United States inspecting poultry facilities.
Russia’s State Duma, the lower parliament chamber, passed a resolution asking the government to keep the ban until the US met all the poultry meat safety demands.—Reuters
