New sanctions on Russia and Belarus
New UK sanctions, announced today (Tuesday), will deny Russia and Belarus access to Most Favoured Nation tariffs for hundreds of their exports and ban UK exports of high-end luxury goods to both countries. The full press release can be viewed at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-announces-new-economic-sanctions-against-russia.
Among these sanctions is an increase in tariffs for imports of a large number of Russian products; these goods will now face an additional tariff increase of 35 percentage points, over and above any existing tariff rate – note that there does not appear to be a detailed listing of the goods involved but we will update you when there is a suitable reference. The list of goods includes:
• Iron, steel
• Copper, aluminium, silver, lead, iron ore
• Machinery
UK Export Finance has announced it will no longer issue any new guarantees, loans and insurance for exports to Russia and Belarus, whilst retaining £3.5 billion of financial support for trade to Ukraine. You can view the press release at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-cuts-off-export-finance-support-to-russia-and-belarus.
Government officials are hosting a webinar for businesses about the recent changes to UK sanctions relating to Russia. Titled “UK sanctions against Russia” and scheduled for Thursday 24 March, 14:00 – 15:30 GMT, the webinar will cover; the scope of sanctions, scope and application of trade sanctions; financial sanctions: restrictions and general licenses; the Export Support Service and enforcement of trade sanctions. Further details can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/notice-to-exporters-202207-webinar-uk-sanctions-against-russia/nte-202207-webinar-uk-sanctions-against-russia and you can register at https://ditresearch.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6SbwVBKanqdJJau.
Firms with questions relating to trading with Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus can submit their enquiries to DIT’s Export Support Service by visiting https://www.gov.uk/ask-export-support-team, or calling the helpline using the number 0300 303 8955.
CECIMO
CECIMO would like to inform you that the European Commission has set up a sanctions webpage, as well as a Sanctions Map where you can find comprehensive details of all EU sanctions regimes and their corresponding legal acts, including those regimes adopted by the UN Security Council and transposed at EU level.
Moreover, the Commission has set up a central functional mailbox ([email protected]), also dedicated to Belarus, for questions on sanctions.
A whistle-blower tool on the Sanctions Map for reports of sanctions violations across the EU has also been launched, recently. The Commission intends to use these platforms to publish information, documents and links on the Russia (and Belarus) sanctions.