A group of European countries not in the EU aligned with two recent sanctions decisions from the bloc pertaining to Russia and its war in Ukraine.
Jacob Kopnick
Jacob Kopnick, Associate Editor, is a reporter for Trade Law Daily and its sister publications Export Compliance Daily and International Trade Today. He joined the Warren Communications News team in early 2021 covering a wide range of topics including trade-related court cases and export issues in Europe and Asia. Jacob's background is in trade policy, having spent time with both CSIS and USTR researching international trade and its complexities. Jacob is a graduate of the University of Michigan with a B.A. in Public Policy.
Montenegro formally accepted the World Trade Organization Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies June 14, bringing to 77 the number of countries that have accepted the deal. The WTO requires 33 more to reach the two-thirds threshold needed for the agreement to be able to enter into force.
The U.K. on June 14 corrected two entries under its Russia sanctions regime, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation announced. OFSI added a phone number for the financial services company Central Counterparty National Clearing Centre and corrected the address for LLC Kompaniya AMG.
The EU opened a dispute settlement proceeding against Algeria under the two sides' Association Agreement to "address several restrictions" on EU exports and investments, the European Commission's Directorate-General for Trade announced. Algeria imposed various trade restrictions on the EU in 2021, covering multiple sectors, including agriculture and motor vehicles.
Canadian and German national Klaus Pflugbeil, who lives in China, pleaded guilty June 13 to conspiring to steal the trade secrets of an unnamed U.S.-based electric vehicle company to build his own company in China, DOJ announced. He faces a maximum 10-year prison stint following sentencing on Oct. 9.
DOJ repatriated another $156 million in "misappropriated 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) funds to the people of Malaysia," bringing to about $1.4 billion the total returned to Malaysia from the international embezzlement scheme, the department announced June 13.
The EU General Court on June 12 rejected Russian investment fund VEB.RF's application to be removed from the bloc's Russia sanctions regime, according to an unofficial translation. The European Council sanctioned the financial institution for helping undermine the territorial sovereignty of Ukraine and providing material support to "Russian decision-makers responsible for the annexation of Crimea or the destabilization of Eastern Ukraine."
Sergey Nefedov of Anchorage and Mark Shumovich of Bellevue, Washington, were charged June 11 with conducting a scheme to illegally export nearly $500,000 worth of snowmobilers and associated parts from the U.S. to Russia, DOJ announced.
The U.K. on June 13 added 42 entries to its Russia sanctions regime, imposing restrictions on seven individuals and 35 entities, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation announced.
South Korea dropped trade barriers on French and Irish beef, the European Commission's Directorate-General for Trade announced June 13. The commission said the decision follows "consistent representations made by the Commission." The Korean market closed for beef from 15 EU member nations due to outbreaks of bovine spongiform encephalopathy. In 2019, the market reopened for beef from Denmark and the Netherlands.