President Barack Obama, and heads of state from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom, formally ousted Russia from an alliance now labeled the G7 on March 24, and generally agreed to increase sanctions in the Russian energy, banking and arms sectors, a senior administration official told reporters in a press briefing. “A decision was taken that the G7 energy ministers should meet in the coming weeks to strengthen the collective energy security of the G7,” said a senior administration official. “And this provides a forum to discuss ways, for instance, to diversify energy supply for Europe as we consider potential sectoral sanctions, including on the energy sector in Russia.” Some U.S. lawmakers have been pushing for increased U.S. natural gas exports to Europe to alleviate dependence on Russian natural gas imports (see 14030614). The meeting came during the Nuclear Security summit.

President Barack Obama and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte expressed support for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership as a tool to create bilateral, U.S.-European Union growth during public comments that followed a March 24 meeting between the two heads of state at The Hague in the Netherlands. “We’re already among each other’s largest trade and investment partners, but we can always do more,” said Obama, according to a transcript released by the White House. “And so I appreciated the Netherlands’ strong support for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, or TTIP, which can fuel growth both in the United States and in Europe, especially for our small and medium-sized companies.” Obama traveled to The Hague for the Nuclear Security Summit. The U.S. and EU concluded the most recent TTIP round of negotiations on March 14 (see 14031101). Obama also met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on March 24 at The Hague, but the two leaders did not discuss trade in remarks that preceded the bilateral, according to a transcript released by the White House.

The administration is unlikely to secure Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), nor will it conclude Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiations, before the end of President Barack Obama’s second term, said Cato trade analyst Daniel Pearson. The administration is not demonstrating obvious commitment to TPA passage, and the absence of TPA legislation could derail trade pact negotiations, said Pearson, in an argument commonly referenced by critics of the administration’s trade policy. “It seems inconceivable that the other countries negotiating TPP or TTIP would be willing to complete those packages under circumstances in which Congress would be free to amend them by refusing to approve provisions that are politically sensitive in the United States,” said Pearson. “Ambassador Froman appears to be interested in completing the TPP negotiations, then using that agreement as bait to get the Congress to vote in favor of fast-track authority. That approach is backward and has a very low probability of working.” TTIP is more likely to survive a continuing period of U.S. domestic political uncertainty on the trade agenda, but TPP faces more difficult obstacles, said Pearson

President Barack Obama is scheduled to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping March 24-25 during the Nuclear Security Summit in The Hague, Netherlands, the Chinese state media agency Xinhua said on March 17. The White House did not immediately respond to an inquiry on whether trade issues will be discussed.

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.