Ukraine has lost a dispute in relation to measures concerning traffic in transit taken by Russia in the World Trade Organization (WTO) at the level of panel of arbiters.
According to a report of the arbiters posted on the WTO website on April 5, they have found that Russia has not acted inconsistently with its obligations under the GATT 1994 or with commitments in Russia’s accession protocol.
The panel makes no recommendation to the DSB (Dispute Settlement Body) pursuant to Article 19.1 of the DSU (Dispute Settlement Understanding).
As reported, Ukraine in the middle of September 2016 sent a request to hold consultations with Russia in WTO regarding measures concerning traffic in transit taken by Russia. The consultation held in November did not result in consensus.
On June 6, 2017, the Director General of the WTO on June 6 formed a panel of arbitrators to consider Ukraine’s claims against the Russian Federation in the lawsuit on transit restrictions.
The WTO specified the United States, the EU, China, Japan, Korea, Turkey, India, Moldova, Canada, Australia, Norway, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Saudi Arabia and Singapore reserved the right to participate in panel proceedings as third parties.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has extended the period of economic security measures applied in international cargo transit from Ukraine until Jan. 1, 2019.
The adjustments were made to the Russian president’s decree dated Jan. 1, 2016, which required that international motor and rail cargo transit from the territory of Ukraine to the territory of Kazakhstan via the territory of Russia be conducted exclusively from the territory of Belarus “on the condition of use of identification means [seals] in cargo bays [compartments] of vehicles and rolling stock, premises, containers and other places where goods are or may be present, including those operating on the basis of the Glonass global navigation satellite system’s technology, and on the condition of registration cards possessed by drivers of motor vehicles providing the transportation.”
