Posts Tagged ‘WTO’
U.S., Russia try to reset and retrench relations, but Magnitsky bill threatens process
The visit of a multimillionaire Russian senator to the United States last week was difficult, upbeat and contradictory — the very image of the reset-retrench relationship between the two countries.
Vitaly Malkin was in Washington to confront Congress over the Magnitsky bill, which would put Russians connected with human rights abuses on a blacklist, denying them U.S. visas and freezing their assets.
The bill has infuriated Russian officials, and they speak about it often and with vehemence. “We really don’t want the U.S. Congress to adopt this bill, which has the potential to deteriorate U.S.-Russia relations for years, or even for decades, to come,” Malkin said at a news conference last Wednesday.
But the day before found him at the Open World office at the Library of Congress, posing for a friendly photo with James H. Billington, the librarian of Congress, and discussing his commitment of more than $1 million to the U.S. government-run Open World program. Malkin’s money helps send prospective leaders from his constituency on exchanges to the United States to learn about good governance, rule of law and other highlights of democracy.
While Malkin and three colleagues from the upper house of parliament were in the United States, Russia’s lower house was adopting a law requiring non-governmental organizations that accept foreign money and engage in election monitoring, human rights advocacy and corruption fighting to declare themselves as foreign agents.
Russian activists say the foreign agent law, which the upper house, the Federation Council, is expected to rubber-stamp this week, was pushed along in retaliation for the Magnitsky bill.
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The Sergei Magnitsky bill
When Congress takes the lead on foreign policy the result is not usually optimal. Some worry that America’s first branch of government is about to add to its dubious record with passage of the Magnitsky bill – named after the Russian lawyer who died in a Moscow jail in 2009 after having exposed massive corruption.
There are reasons to worry Congress may be overreaching. But the bill should not be discarded. Russia may be an indispensable, if frequently obstructive, international partner. But at home its government sometimes behaves like a criminal enterprise. The treatment of Sergei Magnitsky is one such instance.
There are two main objections to the bill in its latest form. Neither is insuperable. The first concerns the need to accommodate Russia’s recent entry into the World Trade Organisation, which is a White House priority in what remains of this Congress. In order to comply with WTO rules, the US has to scrap the 1974 Jackson-Vanik law, which linked the Soviet Union’s trade access to human rights benchmarks, notably its treatment of Jewish “refuseniks”. The law lost its purpose after the USSR’s collapse in 1991.
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Baucus Announces Markup of Jobs Bill Establishing Permanent Normal Trade Relations with Russia
US Senate Committee on Finance
With Russia Joining the WTO, Finance Chairman’s Mark Will Enable U.S. Businesses to Capitalize on Increased Market Access.
Washington, DC – Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) today released his Chairman’s Mark of a bill to establish permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) with Russia and remove Russia from the 1974 Jackson-Vanik amendment, which will enable U.S. businesses to capitalize on Russia’s growing market. Baucus also scheduled a markup to take place at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, July 18,in Room 215 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building. Baucus’s bill would support and create thousands of U.S. jobs across every sector of the American economy, including manufacturing, agriculture and services, by helping double U.S. exports to Russia within five years.
“Increasing our exports to Russia will help create new jobs and give America’s economy the shot in the arm it needs. Our exports to Russia will double within the next five years if we pass PNTR soon, which will mean thousands of jobs supported or created across the country. And this economic boost will come at no cost to us whatsoever. We will not have to change one single tariff or trade law,” Baucus said. “Russia is joining the WTO no matter what Congress does – their legislature has already voted and put the wheels in motion – so we need to act soon. My bill will put American businesses, farmers, ranchers and workers in a position to succeed and grow, and that’s exactly what our economy and workers need.”
Russia’s lower house of parliament, the State Duma, recently approved an agreement to join the World Trade Organization (WTO). Russia’s upper house, the Federation Council, is expected to take up the measure soon, after which Russia will officially join the WTO 30 days later. As part of the “accession” process, as it is known, Russia will lower tariffs and increase market access for foreign businesses from countries with which it has permanent normal trade relations. Congress must pass legislation establishing PNTR by the time Russia joins the WTO for U.S. businesses to see the full economic benefits of the deal.
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Magnitsky bill opens door to wider targets
When the Magnitsky bill first started making its way through the US Congress a couple of years ago, its authors had one target in mind: to punish Russian officials behind the death of Sergei Magnitsky, a lawyer who blew the whistle on a government corruption case and died in jail.
With human rights causes, however, one powerful example can sometimes open the door to much broader action. This could well happen with the Magnitsky bill. As the legislation gets closer to passage – potentially this month – the human rights lobby is on the verge of winning an important tool to influence US foreign policy.
While Russian corruption was the initial target, some in Congress are already thinking about other causes it can be used to pursue. And they have some big fish in mind. “If the bill stays as it is at the moment,” says one Senate staff member involved with the legislation, “this will be as much about China as it is about Russia.”When Magnitsky was doing some legal work for the Hermitage investment group, he discovered evidence that a group of Russian officials had effectively stolen $230m in tax payments made by Hermitage. When he detailed his allegations, he was arrested in late 2008 and accused of fraud.
Nearly a year later, he died in jail after being denied medical treatment.
Two years ago, a couple of Democrats in Congress started to push a bill that named the 60 Russian officials and police officers they said were behind Magnitsky’s death.
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Time running out for Russia trade bill
The Russian parliament is expected to vote to join the World Trade Organization (WTP) on Tuesday, giving Congress a short window to either adopt trade legislation or risk seeing U.S. companies trail competitors in the world’s ninth-largest economy.
Establishing normal trade relations with Russia is a no-brainer for U.S. businesses eyeing a vast export market, but lawmakers in the House and Senate are still debating how to do that while retaining leverage over the country on human rights.
Once the Russian parliament ratifies accession to the world trade body, Russia will automatically become a WTO member within 30 days. If the vote happens Tuesday, it means Congress would have to act before the August recess to prevent U.S. companies from losing out.
“The [Obama] administration has consistently urged Congress to terminate application of the Jackson-Vanik amendment and authorize the president to extend permanent normal trade relations to Russia before it becomes a WTO Member,” a spokesperson for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative told The Hill via e-mail.
Doing so would “ensure that American workers and businesses will be able to reap the full benefits of Russia’s WTO membership and to put them on a level playing field with their competitors in Latin America, Europe and Asia,” the spokesperson said.
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Supporting human rights in Russia should be a core strategic interest for US
On Tuesday, July 10, the Russian Duma will vote on ratification of the agreement for Russia’s entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO). Policymakers in both countries view Russia’s entry as a foregone conclusion. The question before Congress therefore is how best to pressure Russia to respect human rights following its repeal of the Jackson-Vanik amendment.
Passed in 1974, Jackson-Vanik tied favorable trade to the freedom to emigrate from the Soviet Union. It provided a foundation for Cold War human rights advocacy. The Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act, approved unanimously by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on June 26, was meant to fill the void left by lifting Jackson-Vanik.
Named after a Russian anti-corruption lawyer tortured and killed in prison in 2009 after he uncovered a $230 million embezzlement scheme, it would sanction Russia’s worst human rights violators by denying them U.S. visas and freezing their assets in U.S. banks.
However, at the last minute, in order to assuage the Kremlin, the Committee chose not to single out Russia and passed a watered-down version of the bill, applying it to human rights abusers worldwide. Lost is the original purpose of the Act—to show ordinary Russians that the United States wants to see a better Russia—one that does not abuse its citizens and one that can be a strong partner to the United States, an ally with whom we share values.
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Magnitsky bill and Russian national interests
Valdaiclub.com interview with Nikolai Zlobin, Senior Fellow and Director of the Russia and Asia Programs at the World Security Institute in Washington, D.C., member of the Valdai Discussion Club.
What do you think is the likelihood that President Obama will veto the bill on visa sanctions against the Russians who are allegedly involved in human rights violations (the Magnitsky list)?
Vetoing this bill by the president of the United States is highly unlikely. The White House and the State Department have made an administrative decision with regard to this issue a long time ago. This list has been used by the State Department for a fairly long time, and these people are banned from entering the United States.
Many in the U.S. administration are saying that this move is more pro-Russian than anti-Russian. Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev have on many occasions stated the need to combat corruption. Therefore, the Americans are thus helping them by not letting in people who committed crimes in Russia and are seeking refuge abroad. These people will be unable to leave Russia and won’t be allowed to transfer their money, families or property to the United States.
If President Obama vetoes this bill, it will trigger a violent reaction in Congress, primarily among the Republicans, who are seeking to discredit his Russia policy, because he and his administration spearheaded this list. If Obama vetoes it, it will cause a huge wave of criticism.
Do you think the Magnitsky List will be expanded? When will the names on this list be disclosed?
Each country can decide who and when can cross its borders without providing any explanations. The fact that the list is being adopted by Congress as legislation makes it more stable. Otherwise, it could have been modified to accommodate internal instructions from U.S. officials. This will not happen to the Magnitsky List.
Once Congress passes the bill, they will no longer be able to keep the names on this list secret. Under the Freedom of Information Act, any journalist, including from Russia, will be able to request the names.
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Putin seeks to show he won’t buckle to U.S.
The Russian parliament intends to take up a bill Tuesday designed to hamper and frustrate civil society groups that accept money from abroad — which means, effectively, from the United States — in a move that is being portrayed as retaliation for the Magnitsky bill making its way through Congress.
The Russian legislation, which has the Kremlin’s backing, comes at a difficult moment in relations between Washington and Moscow, characterized by sharp disagreements over Syria and missile defense, and deep ambiguities concerning Iran. From the start, the Obama administration has tried to avoid linking one issue to another in its Russia policy — making trade agreements dependent on progress on human rights, for instance.
Indeed, the administration opposes the Magnitsky bill, which would bar from the United States those officials who were involved in the imprisonment and subsequent death of the whistleblower Sergei Magnitsky. But the deepening bilateral strains place the White House’s compartmentalization at risk.
The key moment was Vladimir Putin’s return to the presidency in March elections.
“Deep down, Putin believes the West is an opponent,” said Georgy Mirsky, an expert on Russia’s Middle East policy. “Not an enemy; he doesn’t believe there will be American aggression against Russia, no. But he believes the West is always trying to find a weak spot in our armor, to enrich itself at our expense — and we must respond in kind.”
That explains Putin’s position on Syria, Mirsky said — and it would explain the new attack on nonprofit organizations. Putin has accused civil society groups of working at the behest of foreign powers and of trying to foment political upheaval. He accused Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton of giving the go-ahead to anti-government demonstrations in Russia last winter.
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Magnitsky Act: Congress Should Uphold America’s Commitment to Human Rights
On Tuesday, the Senate Foreign Relation Committee unanimously passed the Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act, which would ban Russian officials involved in Magnitsky’s death from entering the U.S. and using U.S. financial institutions. The bill was cleared earlier this month by a House committee.
Russian deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov called the Senate committee’s decision “counterproductive” and threatened “harsh” retaliation, including banning certain U.S. officials from visiting Russia. This past May, the Russian ambassador also threatened to retaliate if the Magnitsky act becomes law.
Be that as it may, the Obama Administration and Congress should not yield to Russian threats but should uphold America’s commitment to human rights. Russian officials should have thanked American lawmakers for stepping in where Russian law enforcement failed abysmally.
Magnitsky’s in a Russian prison is a demonstration of rampant corruption in the Russian state’s highest echelons. Magnitsky was a 37-year-old attorney and accountant who worked for Hermitage, then the largest Western private equity fund in Russia. In the course of his work, he uncovered a giant alleged corruption scheme that involved embezzlements of $230 million from the Russian treasury by law enforcement and tax officials.
After making accusations, he was placed in prison, where he was beaten mercilessly by guards and denied medical care, which led to his tragic death. An investigation by the Russian Presidential Council on Human Rights has confirmed as much. However, this has not resulted in the punishment of those involved. On the contrary, some of the culprits were even promoted and decorated.
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