The EU General Court in a June 22 judgment rejected the application from businessman George Haswani to annul the European Council's decision maintaining his listing on the Syria sanctions regime, according to an unofficial translation. The court ruled the council gave sufficient precise and consistent evidence to show Haswani is an influential businessman in Syria given his interests in HESCO Engineering and Construction. This allowed the court to rule his listing should be maintained because Haswani failed to rebut the presumption that he is tied to the Syrian regime.
Belgium recently announced a new foreign direct investment screening regime, which is expected to have a “significant impact on deal certainty” for investors outside the EU, Crowell & Moring said in a June 22 alert. The alert outlines transactions that may be captured by the regime, the screening procedures, how reviews will be conducted and more.
The U.K. announced the start of free trade agreement negotiations with the Gulf Cooperation Council. Trade with the six GCC countries -- Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates -- totals over $40.7 billion. The Gulf nations' oil and gas reserves won't be part of any trade deal, though manufacturing and the supply chain for that key sector will be an element of the talks, Reuters reported June 22.
Lithuania barred transport of EU-sanctioned goods via rail lines through its land to the Russian region of Kaliningrad, The Washington Post reported. The Russian government said June 21 that Lithuania would face "serious" consequences for the move. The Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said June 20 that the transit of passengers and goods not covered by EU sanctions will continue uninterrupted. The Foreign Ministry pointed to the fourth package of EU sanctions to discuss the trade that had been halted between Lithuania and Kaliningrad -- a Russian area that houses Moscow's Baltic Sea Fleet but has no land connection to the rest of the country -- and that includes steel and other ferrous metal products.
The U.K. and Thailand held the first Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) meeting June 21, the U.K. Department for International Trade announced June 21. U.K. Trade Policy Minister Penny Mordaunt and Thai Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit held talks on how to boost bilateral trade, agreeing to a work program that includes government-to-government and government-to-business activity over the next 12-18 months, the DIT said. The ministers also agreed to build an "Enhanced Trade Partnership" that could pave the way for a future free trade agreement. Areas covered by the JETCO include private sector outcomes, digital, agriculture, food and drink, healthcare, financial services, trade promotion and the bilateral economic relationship.
Italy's proposal to cap natural gas prices in Europe is garnering greater support with countries viewing it as the only solution to rising oil costs, Italian Energy Minister Roberto Cingolani said, Bloomberg reported. Italy suggested placing a limit on the price of gas imports from Russia to slow inflation, but Germany, among other countries, has been reluctant to take up the plan, Bloomberg said June 20. Cingolani said a price cap "seems to be the only sustainable solution," with the move skirting the risk of "someone waking up some morning" and putting forward "a crazy gas-price level." Other measures under consideration include separating prices for gas-fired power from renewable energy prices and generating greater electricity from coal-fueled plants, Cingolani said. Germany has announced plans to reboot coal-fired power stations to drop the reliance on Russian gas.
Ukrainian grain exporters have developed a new export route via the Baltic Sea to get their product out amid Russia's invasion, Bloomberg reported. With ports on the Black Sea no longer an option for the exporters, grain producers have looked to land routes, shipping the product via railway, road and river to other European countries. According to a spokesperson from the Spanish company Puerto A Coruna, the first Ukrainian corn shipment sent via Romania was received in April, and now Spain has received its shipment from Poland, with the vessel carrying 18,000 tons of corn shipped via trucks in Ukraine.
The U.K.'s Department for International Trade updated its guidance on duty suspensions and tariff quotas. The updated guidance walks traders through the duty suspension application process for applications made in the 2021 applications window.
The European Council on June 17 adopted new rules to promote reciprocity in accessing public procurement markets across the globe. The new public procurement instrument will give the European Commission investigative powers and allow it to take up measures in the EU's interest, the council said.
The U.K. amended or corrected a number of entries under several of its sanctions regimes. Under the Syria sanctions list, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation amended the entries for Fares Chehabi, president of the Aleppo Chamber of Industry; Khodr Ali Taher, director of Ella Towers; and the Syrian Petroleum Company. OFSI then corrected the entry for Adnan Slakho, former minister for industry. Under the Libya sanctions list, OFSI amended the entry for Khalifa Ghwell, defense minister of the General National Congress. Under the Iran (Human Rights) sanctions list, OFSI amended seven entries. This listings for Ali Khalili, Ali-Akbar Yasaghi, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei, Mortez Tamaddon, Mostafa Bozorgnia, Moussa Khalilollahi and Toraj Kazemi were updated, and all of the individuals remain subject to an asset freeze. Four entries under the Chemical Weapons sanctions regime were amended: the agency updated the listings for Vladimir Stephanovich Alexseyev, first deputy head of the GRU, Russia's military intelligence agency; Vladimir Mikhailovich Bogdanov, former director of the Criminalistics Institute and head of the FSB (Federal Security Service) Special Technology Center; Kirill Vasilyev, director of the Criminalistics Institute at the FSB; and Alexei Semenovich Sedov, head of the FSB 2nd Service. All are believed to have been involved in the poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny.