Dear International Trade and Investment Committee Members,
Here are the international trade and investment articles and publications of interest for the week of March 17 to March 23. This week’s edition has been curated by Andrew Lanouette. Andrew is International Trade Counsel at Cassidy Levy Kent in Ottawa and the Co-Chair of the International Trade and Investment Committee.
Top News: The Situation in Ukraine/Canada Imposes Sanctions Against Russia and Ukraine
- On March 17, 2014, the Special Economic Measures (Ukraine) Regulations (“the SEMA Regulations”) came into force in order to respond to the gravity of the situation in Ukraine.
- On March 18, 2014, these Regulations were amended to include additional names.
- In addition, the Freezing Assets of Corrupt Foreign Officials (Ukraine) Regulations, which took effect as of March 5, 2014, freeze the assets of 18 designated persons.
- On March 17, 2014, the Special Economic Measures (Russia) Regulations (“the Regulations”) came into force in order to respond to the gravity of Russia’s violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Ukraine.
- On March 18, 2014, these Regulations were amended to include additional names.
- On March 21, 2014, these Regulations were again amended to include additional names.
- U.S. companies with operations in Russia should prepare for growing tensions by reviewing evacuation plans, tightening cybersecurity and being alert for a spike in anti-American sentiment, according to corporate-security analysts.
- Ukraine’s negotiations with the European Union for a free trade agreement, the Russian customs union with Belarus and Kazakhstan, and the World Trade Organization (WTO) all play key roles in the current Russian-Ukrainian conflict that has set the world’s nerves on edge. Western analysts have spent a great deal of energy speculating about Russia’s foreign policy interests, Putin’s psyche and other issues, but underlying economic issues have received far lesser attention. However the tug of war between the EU and Russia over Ukraine, and World Trade Organization rules and commitments, play an enormous role in this conflict.
- Bombardier Inc.’s plans to build planes in Russia and the sale of $3.4 billion of aircraft will be delayed as Canada joins the U.S. in imposing sanctions against the country after it moved to annex Crimea, Chief Executive Officer Pierre Beaudoin said.
- President Barack Obama has sanctioned Rossiya Bank (known to be popular with Russia’s political elite) and a further 20 individuals – described as Putin ‘inner-circle members’ – in an attempt to bring further pressure on Russia following its annexation of the Crimean Peninsula.
- The Government of Canada is taking important steps to support Ukraine and to impose sanctions against those responsible for the ongoing crisis.
Government Announcements/Press Releases
- The Canadian International Trade Tribunal today continued its findings made on March 17, 2009, in Inquiry No. NQ-2008-003, as amended by its determination made on February 10, 2011, in Inquiry No. NQ-2008-003R, concerning the dumping and subsidizing of aluminum extrusions from the People's Republic of China.
- The Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of the Environment, Minister of the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency (CanNor) and Minister for the Arctic Council, today delivered the following statement to the World Trade Organization Appellate Body.
- Creating jobs and opportunities for hardworking Canadians in every region of the country is our priority, says Minister Fast
- The high-profile debate on the EU’s seal products ban returned to the WTO this week, with the organisation’s Appellate Body hearing appeals from Canada, Norway, and the EU on the subject. The case has received widespread notoriety both due to its emotive content and also since it deals with the thorny topic of how public morality goals relate to international trade rules.
- On March 6, 2014, pursuant to paragraph 41.1(1)(a) of the Special Import Measures Act, the President of the Canada Border Services Agency made a new final determination of dumping respecting liquid dielectric transformers having a top power handling capacity equal to or exceeding 60,000 kilovolt amperes (60 megavolt amperes), whether assembled or unassembled, complete or incomplete, originating in or exported from the Republic of Korea.
Commentary
- If Canadians need a reason to support the just-announced free trade agreement with South Korea, here are a few hundred million: every year, Canadians pay hundreds of millions of dollars in hidden taxes on imported automobiles and auto-related products. At least some of those hidden taxes are in the form of tariffs applied to imports from South Korea.
- Beginning in the 1950s, trade negotiators evolved an elegant solution to a vexing problem: the risk that poor countries would seize the oil fields, mines, and factories of Western corporations that operated within their borders. Fearful of nationalization or other harsh treatment, multinationals were holding back on investment. Everyone lost.