Small European Nations to Trade with Russia

A group of four small western European countries is seeking a free-trade agreement with Russia and other eastern European nations.

Trade ministers from the tiny European Free Trade Association (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland) accepted a report by a joint study group that concluded it would be feasible to establish a wide-ranging free-trade agreement between the EFTA nations and the Russian Federation. The report was prepared by trade experts from both Russia and the EFTA nations who met four times during 2008.

The discussions are the latest in a series of talks aimed at strengthening trade ties between the western European bloc and the formerly communist nations of Eastern Europe. Earlier this spring, EFTA initiated discussions about possible free trade agreements with Serbia, Ukraine and Albania.

Contact Alan Field at afield@joc.com.