Switzerland and Russia successfully concluded bilateral negotiations on Friday on Moscow's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Swiss Economics Minister Joseph Deiss and his Russian counterpart, German Gref, signed the accord on the fringes of the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, a famous skiing resort in eastern Switzerland, Swiss Radio International reported.

The agreement leaves Russia needing only the backing of the United States, Australia and Colombia out of the WTO's 149 member states to complete the country-by-country part of the accession process.

The deal will lead to lower Russian import duties, after a transition period, for Swiss chemical products, textiles, machinery and watches among other goods.

Russia, the largest economy still outside the Geneva-based WTO, will also grant more access to Swiss banking and insurance companies.

Russia has been negotiating to join the global commerce body since 1993. It has had to embark on a major set of legislative reforms to fall in line with WTO rules.

Entry to the WTO requires the signing of bilateral deals with all states that demand them as well as negotiating directly with the global trade body to ensure that a candidate's domestic commercial regulations conform to WTO rules.

Source: Xinhua