Azerbaijan Wants More Time for Protectionism Before Joining WTO

President Ilham Aliyev said Azerbaijan has no intention of joining the World Trade Organization anytime soon, arguing that for the moment, the Caspian Sea nation needs to support domestic producers with protectionism.

While Azerbaijan has already completed bilateral talks with several countries, “I don’t think the time has come” for the country to join the WTO as Azerbaijan still depends heavily on oil and natural gas for exports, Aliyev said in comments posted on his website.

He stopped short of saying his government will suspend its 22-year-old WTO membership talks.

“We don’t have to join WTO to export oil and ...