In a move that appears to take the country a step closer to joining the World Trade Organisation, Russia has officially been declared a fully fledged "market economy" by the European Union (EU).

Commission president Romano Prodi announced the news on May 29, praising the economic reforms that Russia has successfully undertaken in the last few years. The EU is the first trade power to allocate a market economy status to Russia.

The European Commission will now set the legislative wheels in motion in order to formalise Russia's new status, which should take only a matter of months.