During the 112 th Congress, Members faced the issue of whether to extend permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) status to Russia and Moldova. On November 16, 2012, the House passed (365-43), and on December 6, 2012, the Senate passed (92-4) H.R. 6156 , which did just that, among other things. President Obama signed the legislation into law ( P.L. 112-208 ) on December 14, 2012. In essence, the principle requires that each WTO member treat the product of another member no less favorably than it treats a like product from any other member. The United States grants all but a few countries, namely Cuba and North Korea, normal trade relations (NTR), or MFN, status. Section 402 of Title IV, the so-called Jackson-Vanik amendment, denies the countries eligibility for NTR status as long as the country denies its citizens the right of freedom of emigration. 6156 , which authorized PNTR for Russia, contained provisions that required 
the USTR report annually to the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee on Russia's implementation of its WTO commitments, including sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standards and IPR protection and on acceding to the WTO plurilateral agreements on government procurement and information technology; the USTR report to the two committees within 180 days and annually thereafter on USTR actions to enforce Russia's compliance with its WTO commitments; the USTR and the Secretary of State report annually on measures that they have taken and results they have achieved to promote the rule of law in Russia and to support U.S. trade and investment by strengthening investor protections in Russia; the Secretary of Commerce to take specific measures against bribery and corruption in Russia, including establishing a hotline and website for U.S. investors to report instances of bribery and corruption; a description of Russian government policies, practices, and laws that adversely affect U.S. digital trade be included in the USTR's annual trade barriers report (required under section 181 of the Trade Act of 1974); and the negotiation of a bilateral agreement with Russia on equivalency of SPS measures. The 113 th Congress may face the issue of extending PNTR to at least two r countries. On December 10, 2012, WTO members invited Tajikistan to join, subject to that country's ratification of its accession package. In addition, Kazakhstan may accede to the WTO in 2013. Both countries are currently subject to Title IV of the Trade Act of 1974.
Unconditional most-favored-nation (MFN) status, or in U.S. statutory parlance, normal trade relations (NTR) status, is a fundamental principle of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Under this principle, WTO members are required unconditionally to treat imports of goods and services from any WTO member no less favorably than they treat the imports of like goods and services from any other WTO member country. Under Title IV of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended, most communist or nonmarket-economy countries were denied MFN status unless they fulfilled freedom-of-emigration conditions as contained in Section 402, the so-called Jackson-Vanik amendment, or were granted a presidential waiver of the conditions, subject to congressional disapproval. The statute still applies to some of these countries, even though most have replaced their communist governments. The majority of these countries have joined the WTO or are candidates for accession. Several countries are close to completing the accession process, and Congress could soon face the issue of what to do about their NTR status to ensure that the United States benefits from those accession agreements.
During the 112th Congress, Members faced the issue of whether to extend permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) status to Russia and Moldova. On November 16, 2012, the House passed (365-43), and on December 6, 2012, the Senate passed (92-4) H.R. 6156, which did just that, among other things. The legislation also included provisions—the Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act of 2012—that impose sanctions on individuals linked to the incarceration and death of Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky. President Obama signed the legislation into law (P.L. 112-208) on December 14, 2012.
The 113th Congress may face the issue of extending PNTR to at least two other countries. On December 10, 2012, WTO members invited Tajikistan to join, subject to that country's ratification of its accession package. In addition, Kazakhstan may accede to the WTO in 2013. Both countries are currently subject to Title IV of the Trade Act of 1974.