On April 20, 2016, the Department of State published in the Federal Register a document [Public Notice: 9527] setting forth the Secretary of State’s designation of “countries of particular concern” for religious freedom violations pursuant to Section 408(a) of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (Pub. L. 105-292), as amended (the Act). The Secretary has designated each of the following as a “country of particular concern” under the Act, for having engaged in or…
On April 20, 2016, the Department of State published in the Federal Register a document [Public Notice: 9527] setting forth the Secretary of State’s designation of “countries of particular concern” for religious freedom violations pursuant to Section 408(a) of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (Pub. L. 105-292), as amended (the Act). The Secretary has designated each of the following as a “country of particular concern” under the Act, for having engaged in…
On April 5, 2016, the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) announced that effective February 4, 2016, the Ministry of Food & Drug Safety (MFDS) of the Republic of Korea implemented the Special Act on Safety Management of Imported Food (Act). TTB is part of an interagency group that is working with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service personnel stationed in Korea, who continue to engage with Korean authorities as…
On March 17, 2016, Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce (Commerce) published in the Federal Register a list of scope rulings and anticircumvention determinations made between July 1, 2015, and September 30, 2015, inclusive. Commerce intends to publish future lists after the close of the next calendar quarter. Scope rulings were issued in the following cases: A–201–805: Circular Welded Non-Alloy Steel Pipe From Mexico A–588–845: Stainless Steel Sheet and Strip…
On February 10, 2016, the South Korean Ministry of Unification announced that as a result of the recent launching of a long-range missile after a nuclear test, it was shutting down the Gaeseong (also spelled Kaesong) Industrial Complex, which is located in the north and uses North Korean workers and South Korean managers. The announcement said: To date, the total amount of cash that flowed into North Korea through the Gaeseong Industrial Complex is 616…
On January 12, 2016, the Office of the United States Trade Representative USTR) published in the Federal Register a notice announcing that for the purpose of U.S. Government procurement that is covered by Title III of the Trade Agreements Act of 1979, the effective date of the Protocol Amending the Agreement on Government Procurement, done on March 30, 2012 at Geneva, World Trade Organization (the Protocol), for the Republic of Korea is January 14, 2016. …
On December 30, 2015, the Defense Acquisition Regulations System, Department of Defense (DoD) published in the Federal Register a final rule [Docket DARS–2015–0066] amending the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to incorporate increased thresholds for application of the WTO Government Procurement Agreement and the Free Trade Agreements, as determined by the United States Trade Representative (USTR). Every two years, the trade agreements thresholds are escalated according to a predetermined formula set forth in the…
On December 21, 2015, President Obama signed Presidential Proclamation — African Growth and Opportunity Act which: • terminated the designation of Burundi as a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country for purposes of section 506A of the 1974 Act, effective on January 1, 2016; • added additional tariff lines to Chapter 99 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) of the United States to reduce administrative burden and encourage electronic administration of the quota classifications of sugars, syrups, and molasses…
On 25 November 2015, the Official Journal published a notice stating that the Free Trade Agreement between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Korea, of the other part, signed in Brussels on 6 October 2010, will enter into force on 13 December 2015.