YOKOHAMA, Japan, Nov 13 (Reuters) - Russia has started its first Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations with New Zealand, the two countries' leaders said on Saturday as they met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.
"Today we embark on negotiations to reach a Free Trade Agreement. For both countries this is a very good opportunity," New Zealand Prime Minister John Key said during a meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
Russia is the world's fifth-largest food importer with imports reaching $30 billion in 2008. New Zealand's exports to Russia, mostly food products, stood at $187 million in 2009.
"An FTA with Russia would give us an improved position in that (food) market," New Zealand Prime Minister's office said in a statement.
The agreement would also include Belarus and Kazakhstan, which form a customs union together with Russia. Russia is the largest economy outside the World Trade Organisation (WTO) (Writing by Gleb Bryanski; Editing by Ed Davies)