Edition 1 | 2011

Dear Sir or Madam,

This edition of Trade News comes in the wake of recent global events. The reactor disaster at the Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan will have consequences for imports into the European Union. The first radioactively contaminated ships from Japan could reach Europe by the middle of April, and the German ports – particularly the Port of Hamburg – are preparing for this. Furthermore, the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) has issued an emergency regulation that establishes radioactive contamination limits for aircraft arriving from Japan. The European Commission has also increased security measures in relation to imports of food and animal feed from Japan.

The recent political and military events in North Africa still have the world on tenterhooks. In this edition we provide an overview of the implications for foreign trade law and look into the sanctions recently imposed with regard to the situation in Libya, Egypt and Tunisia.

In addition, we report on various topics, including the introduction of Incoterms® 2010; the free trade agreement between the EU and South Korea; sanctions against Iran and Iraq; and the fifth Export Control Day, which took place in Münster at the end of February.

We would like to close with a few words about Graf von Westphalen. We are very pleased and proud to report that our Customs and Foreign Trade Law team has recently won multiple awards in renowned national and international publications (JUVE Handbook of Commercial Law Firms, Who’s Who Legal, InterContinental Finance Magazine), being named, inter alia, German Law Firm of the Year for Trade & Customs. These awards represent both an acknowledgement of our work and an incentive to continue to expand our expertise in this area. We would like to thank our clients, without whom this success would not have been possible, for their trust and cooperation.

We urge you to take note of our various upcoming events and hope that you enjoy reading this edition of Trade News.

Your Foreign Trade Law Team