U.S. lifts trade sanctions against Ukraine

The Bush administration said Wednesday it was lifting trade sanctions that had been imposed on Ukraine to punish the country for its failure to crack down on the piracy of U.S. movies, computer programs and other intellectual property.

The lifting of punitive 100 percent tariffs that had been imposed since 2002 on $75 million worth of Ukrainian exports to the United States came after the Ukrainian parliament in July adopted a tougher anti-piracy law.

The new law, which went into effect on Aug. 2, will strengthen Ukraine's licensing and enforcement efforts aimed at stemming the illegal production and trade in CDs and DVDs.

In announcing the action, U.S. Trade Representative Rob Portman commended Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko and Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko for their personal involvement in getting the tougher law passed.