The Honourable Ed Fast, Minister of International Trade, the Honourable Gail Shea, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, and the Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of the Environment, Minister of the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and Minister for the Arctic Council, today issued the following statement:
“On February 11, 2011, our government requested the establishment of a World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement panel to challenge the European Union’s unfair ban on seal products in order to stand up for Canadian sealers and to vigorously defend the interests of Canada’s Inuit and Indigenous communities.
“Today the WTO panel found that the European Union’s import ban on Canadian seal products violates its international trade obligations. Canada will appeal to the WTO Appellate Body any findings that would allow this unfair ban to continue.
“The WTO panel confirmed Canada’s long-standing position that the EU ban is discriminatory and treats Canadian seal products unfairly. However, the panel also took the view that such a ban can be justified due to some of the public’s concerns regarding seal harvesting...
This has been excerpted from 25 November 2013 news release by FATDC, and is available in its entirety at http://www.international.gc.ca/media/comm/news-communiques/2013/11/25a.aspx?lang=eng.
Topic(s)
Trade Agreements
Information source
Global Affairs Canada (GAC)
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