Canada Hits the Crimea Region with Economic Sanctions and Adds 17 Parties to its Russia Sanctions Blacklist

[On June 29], Canada significantly expanded its economic sanctions against Russia by imposing a wide ban on activities related to the Crimea region, including export, import, technical data and services bans. With these latest amendments, Canada joins the United States and European Union in implementing Crimea-related broad economic sanctions measures.

[The] new measures also add 17 entities and individuals to the lists of designated (i.e., blacklisted) persons under the Special Economic Measures (Russia) Regulations (the “Russia Regulations”). As a result, there are now 290 entities and individuals blacklisted under Canada’s Russia and Ukraine-related sanctions.

Canadian companies doing business abroad should be carefully reviewing and revising their trade control compliance procedures to reflect these latest changes.

These new sanctions measures amend Canada’s Special Economic Measures (Ukraine) Regulations (the “Ukraine Regulations”) by prohibiting persons in Canada and any Canadians outside Canada from engaging in any of the following with respect to the Crimea region of Ukraine:

• making an investment in the region that involves a dealing in any property located in the region that is held by or on behalf of the region or a person in the region;
• providing or acquiring financial or other related services to, from or for the benefit of or on the direction or order of the region or any person in the region for the purpose of making such an investment;
• importing, purchasing, acquiring, shipping or otherwise dealing in goods, wherever situated, that are exported from the region after the day on which these measures come into force;
• export, sell, supply, ship or otherwise deal in goods, wherever situated, destined for the region or any person in the region;
• transferring, providing or communicating technical data or services to, from or for the benefit of or on the direction or order of the region or any person in the region;
• providing or acquiring financial or other services related to tourism to, from or for the benefit of or on the direction or order of the region or any person in the region; and
• docking a cruise ship in the region that is registered or licensed, or for which an identification number has been issued, pursuant to any Act of Parliament...

This has been excerpted from 29 June 2015 article by John W. Boscariol, head of McCarthy Tétrault's International Trade & Investment Law Group, posted on McCarthy Tétrault website.