President Barack Obama issued an executive order on March 17 to sanction seven high-ranking Russian nationals in connection with Russian violation of Ukrainian territorial integrity and to authorize sanctions on additional individuals involved in recent the recent crisis in Ukraine, the White House said in a press release. The order blocks property and interests in property located in the U.S. of the following individuals and blocks the transfer of funds to the individuals:

The year 2014 is shaping up to reflect the previous year’s trade agenda inaction, said National Foreign Trade Council President Bill Reinsch during a Pacific Northwest Waterways Association event. The agenda remains the same, with the Obama Administration pushing the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, Trade in Services Agreement and Trade Adjustment Assistance, along with Information Technology Agreement expansion and other multilateral pacts.

President Obama’s budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2015 (FY15), released by the Office of Management and Budget on March 4, would boost the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) ability to level the global playing field for U.S. workers and exports, USTR Michael Froman said. The budget calls for about $56.2 million for USTR funding (here), roughly a seven percent increases from FY14 levels. The budget proposal slightly increases USTR personnel compensation to $33 million and travel and transportation appropriations to $6 million.

The Obama administration’s multi-faceted strategy to combat trade in poached ivory and rhinoceros horns will hurt law-abiding Americans who traded ivory in the past, and will not help to stem poaching, said Cato senior fellow Doug Bandow in a Feb. 27 blog post. The administration launched the effort on Feb. 11 (see 14021126). Through administrative order and legislation, the Obama administration aims to stamp out nearly all commercial imports into the U.S., along with interstate commerce of related products.

President Barack Obama discussed the U.S. trade agenda with House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, during a meeting between the two on Feb. 25, White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters the same day. Carney declined to elaborate on the specifics of the discussion, adding that a detailed readout is unlikely. Democratic lawmakers, including the leadership in both chambers, continue to contest Trade Promotion Authority and some aspects of the pending Trans-Pacific Partnership (see 14021322). “We believe very strongly, as the president said just last week in Mexico, that having agreements that expand trade and, in particular, when we are talking about the Pacific region, the fastest-growing emerging economies in the world, opening those markets to American goods is good for the economy, and doing so in a way that protects American workers and protects the environment is good for the United States and the world," said Carney. "So that’s why we’re continuing to negotiate agreements, and we will work with Congress to try to bring those agreements into effect.” Boehner previously criticized Obama for not working hard enough to generate support among his party and base (see 14020703).

Implementation legislation for a final Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) pact that contains strong intellectual property rights protections and opens global markets for U.S. agricultural products will pass the U.S. Congress despite some Democratic opposition, said President Barack Obama, speaking at a North American Leaders Summit press conference, alongside Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Obama declined to mention significant Democratic opposition to this year’s version of Trade Promotion Authority, widely regarded as key to implementing free-trade agreement legislation. “There are elements of my party that oppose this trade deal, there are elements of my party that oppose the South Korea free trade agreement, the Colombia free trade agreement and the Panama free trade agreement -- all of which we passed with Democratic votes.” Peña Nieto and Harper both express support for concluding TPP negotiations.

President Barack Obama's Feb. 19 executive order calling for the completion of the International Trade Data System (ITDS) by 2016 (see 14021928) continued to garner support. “This Executive Order will be beneficial to improving our supply chain efficiency and moving goods and services that cross our borders,” said Scott Davis, CEO of UPS, in a press release (here). “This change will be particularly meaningful to our small and medium-sized customers that depend on global trade to grow their businesses and reach the 95 percent of consumers that live outside U.S. borders.”

President Barack Obama intends to prioritize expanding North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) Trusted Traveler programs and concluding Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations during discussions with U.S. and Canadian officials at the North American Leaders Summit in Mexico on Feb. 19, senior Obama Administration officials said in a call with reporters on Feb. 14.

President Barack Obama remains committed to signing Trade Promotion Authority, despite vocal opposition to the legislation from Democratic leaders in Congress, said White House spokesman Jay Carney on Feb. 14. “The idea that there is some opposition within the Democratic Party historically and traditionally to fast track is not a new discovery. It wasn’t new last week, it wasn’t new in 1993, and it certainly hasn’t been new any time in the interim,” said Carney at a White House press briefing. “Our position hasn’t changed, nor has the fact that this is an issue that has been contentious for both parties for decades.” Trade Promotion Authority expired in 1994, under President Bill Clinton, and Congress did not renew the legislation until 2002. The legislation then expired in 2007, and has yet to be renewed.

South Korea will be added to President Barack Obama’s itinerary during his Asia trip scheduled for late April, said the White House press secretary on Feb. 12. Obama will also travel to Japan, Malaysia and the Philippines, said the statement. In South Korea, Obama plans to discuss ongoing implementation of the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement, it said. In Japan, Obama plans to discuss the Trans-Pacific Partnership with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the statement added.