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Note. Unless otherwise noted, all information in this update has been sourced from international organizations (UN, WTO, WCO, APEC, Interpol, etc.), EU, EFTA, Eurasian Economic Union, customs official bulletins, official websites, information newsletters or press releases. from trade unions or government agencies. Specific sources are usually available by clicking on the blue hypertext links. Please note that, as a general rule, information related to fishing is not included.
On Monday, June 5, 2017, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt severed diplomatic relations with Qatar and took action to close access to the Gulf states, boycott air, sea or land traffic to and from Qatar, and also cooperate with other Arab and African countries have followed suit. Political and economic boycotts have had a major impact on international trade.
The Baker McKenzie Global International Trade Team invites you to a 1-hour webinar on Wednesday, July 19, 2017 to share the latest developments, discuss the legal and commercial implications of the boycott on doing business with Qatar and/or Qatari citizens, and Think how a business can ensure the smooth running of its operations.
We hope you can join us. Please register using the link on the right. Login details will be sent by email the day before the event. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact [email protected].
Our market leading international trade team has extensive experience advising clients on political crises and sanctions including Iran, Crimea, Syria and Libya in recent years. We are one of the companies with an experienced international trading team and a physical presence in the main markets of the current crisis (UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and Qatar).
George Sayen, Partner, Saudi Arabia Ghada El Evani, Senior Associate, Egypt/UAE Nick Roberts, Senior Associate, Qatar Ian Siddell, Partner, Bahrain/Qatar Ziad Gadalla, Partner, Egypt
The International Trade Compliance Update is a publication of the Baker McKenzie Global International Business and Trade Group. Articles and reviews are intended to provide our readers with information about the latest legal developments and issues of importance or interest. They should not be regarded or relied upon as legal advice or advice. Baker McKenzie advises on all aspects of international trade law.
Notes on spelling, grammar and dates. In keeping with the global nature of Baker McKenzie, the original spelling, grammar, and date formatting of non-US English material has been preserved from the original source, whether or not the material is cited. Tags.
Most translations of documents into languages other than English are informal, automated, and for informational purposes only.
Unless otherwise noted, all information is obtained from official international organizations or government websites, their messages or press releases.
This update contains public sector information available under the UK Open Government License v3.0. In addition, update the use of the material in accordance with the policy of the European Commission, implemented by the decision of the Commission of December 12, 2011.
UN Security Council passes Resolution 2356 on North Korea, extends asset freeze and travel ban to more individuals, and extends asset freeze to more entities
On June 2, 2017, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) adopted Resolution 2356 (2017) on North Korea (North Korea), condemning in the strongest terms nuclear and ballistic missile development activities, including a series of ballistic missile launches and other Violations and flagrant disregard for Security Council resolutions since 9 September 2009. The United Nations Security Council decided that the measures imposed by paragraph 8 (d) of resolution 1718 (2006) (assets freeze) apply to the 14 individuals and 4 entities listed in annexes I and II to that resolution, as well as to any individual or legal entity. On behalf of or at their direction and entities owned or controlled by them, including through illegal means, the measures set out in paragraph 8(e) of resolution 1718 (2006) (travel ban) apply to persons listed in Annex I to the resolution and persons acting on their behalf or at their direction.
On 21 June 2017, the WTO announced that work to complete Australia’s accession to the WTO’s Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) has been intensified and is nearing completion. The process of accession to the agreement between the Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan is also steadily progressing, as evidenced by informal discussions in the Public Procurement Committee on June 21, 2017. The meeting kicked off accession talks between Russia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
On June 16, 2017, the WTO announced that, at the request of the United States in the US Dispute over Conditional Tax Credits for Large Civil Aircraft (DS487), the Appellate Body division authorized WTO members to comply with delays in oral hearings and public passages. in these appeals. The broadcast of the opening speech took place on Wednesday, July 5, 2017, at the WTO headquarters in Geneva.
Given the need to protect certain sensitive business information, public scrutiny was limited to opening statements by member delegations who agreed to make their statements public.
On June 15, 2017, the WTO announced that, thanks to changes to the WTO rules of origin web page, WTO members and the public now have direct access to member laws and practices related to rules of origin. The updated web page also contains updated information on the ongoing work of the WTO Committee on Rules of Origin.
With the spread of regional trade agreements, more and more countries apply different preferential rules of origin. In addition, a growing number of WTO members are also introducing non-preferential origin requirements. Therefore, the need for transparency and a better understanding of these requirements is growing.
To simplify and centralize access to such claims, notifications received by the WTO Secretariat on preferential and non-preferential rules of origin for members are now available directly through the updated web page. With regard to non-preferential rules of origin, users can quickly see which WTO members apply or do not apply non-preferential rules of origin through a drop-down menu, and if the former, access detailed information on the relevant rules.
With regard to preferential rules of origin, detailed information can be found in the WTO Preferential Trade Agreements Database and the WTO Regional Trade Agreements Information System.
The revised Rules of Origin web page also includes new features such as concise menus and centralized information, meeting documents, links to relevant disputes, and technical assistance information. In addition, the content has been updated to reflect the ongoing work of the WTO Committee on Rules of Origin.
On June 7, 2017, the WTO announced that WTO members will conduct an annual review of export subsidies and other export support measures at the Committee on Agriculture meeting on June 7. They also exchanged information about each other’s agricultural policies. Canada’s dairy policy and India’s wheat stocks are on the radar of members. The ad said:
The Committee’s review of agricultural export policy is part of the monitoring of the implementation of the Nairobi decision on agricultural export subsidies. At a ministerial meeting in Nairobi in December 2015, members decided to eliminate agricultural export subsidies, widely considered unfair trade practices that distort trade and undermine food production in fragile states, and tighten other forms of export support rules.
The WTO Secretariat has circulated a new and revised background document, G/AG/W/125/Rev.6, which includes information on export subsidies, export finance, international food aid, and agricultural exporting State Trading Enterprises (STEs) Four Annexes. The Cairns Agricultural Exporters Group and the Russian Federation have circulated document G/AG/W/164 containing an analysis of information on export support policies. He noted that this was based on the first annual review of members’ reports in 2016, when the Committee began assessing members’ implementation of the Nairobi Ministerial Decisions.
Of the 18 members (1) committed to export subsidies in connection with the Uruguay Round, two members, New Zealand and Panama, have phased out export subsidies. As of May 22, 2017, Australia became the first member to submit to the WTO a revised schedule for waiving its export subsidy rights. Some members provided updates on internal steps taken to prepare for the revision of their commitment schedule. The EU, Israel and Norway said they expected to notify their revised export subsidy schedule by the end of 2017.
Members exchanged information on export competition rules, export finance support, agricultural export GTTs, and international food aid, among others.
In terms of export finance support, the Cairns Group and Russia document noted that “less than half of the projects listed had maturities in excess of the 18-month maximum maturity specified in decision MC10,” while “16 members notified or reported agricultural export GPT covering a wide range of products”.
The Chairman of the Committee, Mr. Alf Wederhus of Norway, noted that members still needed to intensify their efforts to share information. “I encourage members to develop and
Developing countries are in a position to do this by doing their best to provide information that is as accurate and timely as possible, and improve it where possible to inform this special discussion on export competition,” he said.
Members also exchanged information on their agricultural policy practices. Questions and answers for each query can be found in the Agricultural Information Management System.
The Fifth Trade Policy and Practice Review of Nigeria took place from 13 to 15 June 2017. The review was based on a report from the WTO Secretariat and a report from the Government of Nigeria.
The following disputes have recently been referred to the WTO. Click on the case number (“DS”) below to go to the WTO website page for details of this dispute.
U.S. Compensatory Measures for Certain Hot Rolled DS436 Carbon Steel Flat Products from India (India on
During the period covered by this update, the Dispute Resolution Authority (DSB) or the parties to the dispute took or reported the following actions. Group requests are not listed (click on the “DS” number to see a case summary, click on “Events” to see the latest news or documents):
United States – Measures Affecting Trade in Large Civil Aircraft – Second Complaint (Claimant: European Community)
Under the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT Agreement), WTO members are required to report to the WTO all proposed technical regulations that may affect trade with other members. The WTO Secretariat circulates this information to all member countries in the form of “notifications”. For a summary table of notifications issued by the WTO over the past month, see the separate section on WTO notifications on TBT.
On 14 June 2017, the World Customs Organization announced that the decisions taken by the Harmonized System Committee (HSC) of the World Customs Organization at its 59th session (15-24 March 2017) are now available on the announced WCO website.
These include, inter alia, 27 new Classification Opinions and 30 sets of revised HS Explanatory Notes, as well as 28 Classification Rules including Arachidonic Acid (ARA) oils, among others mixtures of red and green pepper fruits (Capsicum frutescens) in cheese ( feta and fresh) and dipped in a liquid consisting of sunflower oil, garlic and spices; rapid diagnostic kits for Zika and other Aedes mosquito-borne diseases; therapeutic bone grafts; substitutes; photoresists, i.e., solutions of photosensitive plastic resins in the lithographic fabrication of semiconductor materials; desktop art easels; laminated textile fabrics; steel electronic safes to protect valuables; palm-sized washing machines powered by small electric motors used to remove stains from clothes; disassembled parts of a bicycle; a virtual reality headset designed to connect and work with certain types of cell phones, and skipping ropes.
WCO supports FTA in Palestine Advances WCO supports Egyptian Customs Administration (ECA) in developing strategic plan Adds Annexes IB to III B and Annex to WCO Preferential Rules of Origin Technical Update Mexico and Israel Sign Joint Action Plan for WCO AEO Program Successfully Supports Customs Jordan Power of Data Time to Release Study (TRS) 2017: WCO ITC Initiates Discussion on Latest IT Trends Growing WCO Trends Burkina Faso Customs Capacity Diagnostic for CITES Implementation WCO with support from Ethiopia Revenue and Customs Administration (ERCA) completes governance diagnostic Ukraine held a national seminar on the Harmonized System and the role of customs laboratories. The WCO supported the development of the EAC. New five-year risk management strategy. The WCO supports the consolidation of the security standards system and the implementation of the AEO program. Partnership in Fiji WCO Member States ASEAN Sub-Regional Workshop on Technical Updates of Rules of Origin held in Bangkok, Thailand Classification Decision at the 59th session of the Committee on the Harmonized System published WCO Workshop on Customs Valuation and Taxation WCO Workshop on Document Packages Asia Pacific highlights the importance of strengthening customs cooperation Taxation Sex WCO Western Balkans Strategic Trade Control Law Enforcement Training Event
Zagreb 6-9 June WCO National Workshop on Post Clearance Audit in Minsk, Belarus Azerbaijan Hosts National Workshop on WCO Customs Lab Modernization Meets with ASEAN Ambassador in Brussels WCO Support for Guinea Customs Facilitates Further Cooperation between the Two Countries Border Agencies in Law Enforcement WCO ITC 2017 summarizes expert opinion on the power of WCO data assists Pakistan Customs in matching its WeBOC system with the WCO data model WCO Revenue Program National Workshop with a focus on Apia, Samoa Benchmarking Study on Preferential Rules of Origin HS 2017 WCO Knowledge Update Academy Opens This WeekWCO Latest News Available WCO Supports National Nigerian Council for Trade Facilitation (NCTF) WCO supports Cameroon’s implementation of free trade agreementWCO supports SACU regional approach Global customs community celebrates International Day Against Evil drug use and drug trafficking 2017 WCO King supports Ethiopia in strengthening its post clearance audit (PCA) capacity
The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) has notified the Parties of the following:
2017/042 Process National Ivory Action Plan (NIAP) Standing Committee Decision 2017/043 Totoaba macdonaldi 2017/044 Rapid registration of Annex I captive animal species for commercial purposes 2017/045 Online survey on disposal of confiscated live specimens 2017/046 Canadian stricter domestic measures on tailfish imports. 2017/047 Madagascar proposes to suspend commercial trade in specimens of Dalbergia species. and persimmon. From Madagascar 2017/048 Operational registration of captive breeding of Annex I animal species for commercial purposes 2017/049 IPBES: External Review of the Global Assessment of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services
During the coverage period, the following documents (other than food safety standards) of interest to international traders are published on Gaceta Oficial Digital (Official Gazette Digital):