"Developments in innovation of our two countries, and the world as a whole, have reached a level where it is necessary to devise common strategies and solutions in order for the economy to develop more effectively and to support the growth of production," said Vladimir Salamatov, the general director of the World Trade Center Moscow. "We can see that working through the questions raised at this forum is not of a small importance to the U.S. government. We can confidently say that we have reached a mutual understanding on all the questions and also have made big plans for collaboration on future projects."
"ANSI is excited to support new areas of cooperation aimed at best practices for implementing WTO principles, leading to those increased trade dollars," said Gary Kushnier, ANSI vice president for international policy, during remarks delivered via videoconference. "With the strong public-private partnership demonstrated through today's forum, we have the perfect opportunity to support industry in both countries and prevent trade barriers before they occur."
In late 2012, ANSI held a briefing to inform members of U.S. industry about the implications of Russia's WTO-related commitments, and to solicit relevant industry feedback about standards, compliance, and market access priorities [see related story]. ANSI subsequently took part in a meeting of Russian and U.S. experts on issues related to international trade [see related story].
During the forum, Mr. Kushnier announced that ANSI had finalized an official Cooperation Agreement with the World Trade Center Moscow. The agreement establishes a mutually beneficial working relationship between the two groups, with the goal of enhancing U.S-Russian cooperation, communication, and industry exchange, as well as encouraging new opportunities for collaboration on projects in connection with standards and conformance.
The event's agenda can be accessed here; to view presentations given during the forum, click here. For more information, please contact Leslie McDermott, ANSI senior manager for international development, at [email protected].