[WTO Case Review Series No.24] Russian Federation—Measures on the Importation of Live Pigs, Pork and Other Pig Products from the European Union (DS475): Clarifying the regulatory framework of regionalization under Article 6 of the SPS Agreement (Japanese)

It has been a generally accepted practice of World Trade Organization (WTO) Members, including Japan, to prohibit the importation of relevant products from the entire territory of an export country where an outbreak of animal infectious diseases occurs. Later on, upon the request from the exporting country to recognize disease-free areas within its territory and restart the imports therefrom, the importing country is required, in accordance with the idea of "regionalization" regulated by Article 6 of the SPS Agreement, to conduct a risk assessment, and restart the imports from the certain areas determined as disease-free under certain conditions. In the present dispute, when the African Swine Fever (ASF) outbreaks were confirmed in Lithuania on January 24, 2014, Russia immediately placed the ban on the importation of pig-related products from the entire European Union (EU), including unaffected EU member States ("EU-wide ban"). Thus, this paper will analyze the issue as to how much the idea and function of regionalization regulated under Article 6 of the SPS Agreement has been clarified through the recent case law, including the present dispute, as well as India-Avian Influenza (DS430) and US-Animals (DS447).