Russia originally applied to join the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1993. Many years and many rounds of fruitless negotiations later, the WTO’s ministerial meeting on December 16, 2011 finally granted entry. Russia will formally join 30 days after the State Duma ratifies the treaty, which must occur by July 2012. It was embarrassing that Russia, the world’s sixth-largest economy and 15th-largest trading nation, was the only G20 country left outside the 153-member WTO. Countries not notably more transparent than Russia have been allowed in—from China in 2001 to Saudi Arabia in 2005 and nearby Ukraine in 2008. Why did this long-running saga finally come to an end, and what are the implications for Russia’s development prospects?