ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE EXIT RUSSIA FROM WTO

The study considers possible positive and negative consequences for Russia and the entire world community of a hypothetical exit of Russia from the WTO. The object of the study is the current rela-tions between the WTO and Russia. The paper aims to assess the possible consequences of Russia's exit from the WTO to make an in formed decision in the conditions of economic pressure from a group of foreign countries. The hypothesis is the prevalence of negative consequences for Russia and the world community of such a decision. The main methods applied in the paper are systematisation of the condi-tions of Russia's entry into the WTO and their correlation with the similar consequences of its exit, and also calculation of Russia's direct financial losses for the period of the country's stay in the WTO. The paper shows that Russia took unprecedented steps to reduce tariffs and fulfil other conditions for joining the WTO, which brought direct financial losses. It also reveals that Russia maintained weighted average tariffs before the direct application of economic sanctions by a group of foreign countries. The author identifies the main positive and negative consequences of Russia's joining the WTO or possible conse-quences of Russia's hypothetical exit from the WTO. They show the possibilities of partial compensa-tion of financial losses for Russia as a WTO member state. The hypothesis about the prevalence of neg-ative financial and non-financial consequences of Russia's exit from the WTO is verified. The author recommends maintaining membership in the WTO and resisting sanctions while staying in the interna-tional organisation to preserve Russia's position in the global financial markets. The author plans to de-velop recommendations on minimising financial losses in the event of Russia's hypothetical exit from the WTO.