The European Union decided to impose trade sanctions against Cambodia as a result of alleged human-rights violations, making good on a year-long threat with tariffs on around 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) of imports from the country.
The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, cleared the way for a partial suspension of a policy that lets Cambodia export all goods except weapons duty-free and quota-free to the bloc.
The move will automatically introduce EU tariffs on sugar, travel goods, some footwear and selected garments from Cambodia as of Aug. 12 unless member-country governments or the European Parliament object during the six-month countdown. The duties will affect around a fifth, or 1 billion euros, of Cambodia’s annual exports to the EU, according to the Brussels-based commission.
