MINSK, February 25 (RIA Novosti) - Belarus hopes to restart WTO accession negotiations in the very near future, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Guryanov said on Monday.

“The work is underway,” he said, adding there was “some delay” related to a change of leadership in the Working Party for Belarus’ accession.

“If all goes well we should hold a meeting in Geneva by the end of the first quarter or beginning of the second quarter,” he said.

Working Party members have “no objections to the resumption of the negotiating process,” he said.

The Working Party for Belarus' WTO accession was set up in October 1993 and held its first meeting in June 1997. The latest meeting of the Working Party was held in May 2005.

Bilateral market access negotiations are ongoing. The WTO Secretariat has prepared an updated Factual Summary on the basis of inputs submitted by Belarus, which was circulated in November 2012, according to information posted on the WTO’s website.

The Working Group includes representatives from 38 WTO member countries.

Belarus is a member of a Customs Union with Russia and Kazakhstan, in which there is free movement of goods and services with no cusotms duties.