AFTINET

The US wants to break China’s dominance in critical minerals, but its new “framework” agreements prioritise US supply security over enforceable rules. Australia is being positioned as a supplier, with safeguards and standards still unclear. aftinet.org.au/critical-min...

A new article argues the crisis in the WTO didn’t start with Trump, but it’s now openly coercive. Weaker countries will pay the price, particularly on climate policy and other governance. aftinet.org.au/wto-climate-...

US big tech companies use ISDS and tariff threats against South Korean regulation | AFTINET According to the petition and arbitration notice, the investors argue that the data breach was a “limited incident” and that South Korean authorities have used it as a pretext to impose disproportionate sanctions on a US-linked company.

US investors are threatening an ISDS case and retaliatory tariffs after South Korea moved to sanction Coupang over a massive data breach. aftinet.org.au/us-big-tech-...

The US wants to break China’s dominance in critical minerals, but its new “framework” agreements prioritise US supply security over enforceable rules. Australia is being positioned as a supplier, with safeguards and standards still unclear. aftinet.org.au/critical-min...

Shell has launched an ISDS case against the Netherlands under the Energy Charter Treaty, seeking compensation over the closure of the Groningen gas field and delaying reparations after earthquakes devastated local communities. aftinet.org.au/shell-isds-e...

A new article argues the crisis in the WTO didn’t start with Trump, but it’s now openly coercive. Weaker countries will pay the price, particularly on climate policy and other governance. aftinet.org.au/wto-climate-...

Just weeks before the US' military strikes on Venezuela, Halliburton quietly filed a $200m arbitration claim against the Venezuelan state, seeking compensation for losses caused by US sanctions. aftinet.org.au/halliburton-...

US investors are threatening an ISDS case and retaliatory tariffs after South Korea moved to sanction Coupang over a massive data breach. aftinet.org.au/us-big-tech-...

A new report shows that US "tariff deals" and trade arrangements are increasingly being used to push countries to alter how they domestically regulate the digital economy. aftinet.org.au/report-shows...

Shell has launched an ISDS case against the Netherlands under the Energy Charter Treaty, seeking compensation over the closure of the Groningen gas field and delaying reparations after earthquakes devastated local communities. aftinet.org.au/shell-isds-e...

New analysis by AFTINET convener Dr Patricia Ranald examines the first year of Trump’s trade policies, linking neoliberal trade failures, inequality and the rise of coercive tariffs. aftinet.org.au/analysis-fir...

Canada’s PM Mark Carney is calling for a values-based global order, but Canada’s mining giants continue to profit from trade rules that let corporations sue governments for environmental and human rights protections. aftinet.org.au/canada-minin...

US studios argue Australian and Canadian content laws unfairly target American streaming services and push for Trump to take trade action. aftinet.org.au/us-film-indu...

Just weeks before the US' military strikes on Venezuela, Halliburton quietly filed a $200m arbitration claim against the Venezuelan state, seeking compensation for losses caused by US sanctions. aftinet.org.au/halliburton-...

Canada’s PM Mark Carney is calling for a values-based global order, but Canada’s mining giants continue to profit from trade rules that let corporations sue governments for environmental and human rights protections. aftinet.org.au/canada-minin...

US studios argue Australian and Canadian content laws unfairly target American streaming services and push for Trump to take trade action. aftinet.org.au/us-film-indu...

Trump says he may impose escalating tariffs on European allies unless they back a US takeover of Greenland, marking a new use of trade pressure to pursue territorial aims. aftinet.org.au/trump-threat...

Report shows how US pressure is reshaping global digital policy | AFTINET January 6, 2026: A new report by Tommaso Giardini for Digital Policy Alert examines whether sustained US pressure is reshaping how other governments regulate the digital economy. Published last month, the study finds that the effects are uneven, contested and often indirect.

A new report shows that US "tariff deals" and trade arrangements are increasingly being used to push countries to alter how they domestically regulate the digital economy. aftinet.org.au/report-shows...

New analysis by AFTINET convener Dr Patricia Ranald examines the first year of Trump’s trade policies, linking neoliberal trade failures, inequality and the rise of coercive tariffs. aftinet.org.au/analysis-fir...

A US–Malaysia trade deal may strip Malaysia of its right to independently assess drug safety and quality, putting US pharmaceutical company interests ahead of public health. aftinet.org.au/us-malaysia-...

A new report warns that the US-Indonesia trade deal, announced by Trump in July and reportedly at risk of collapse, could unravel Indonesia’s efforts to regain control over its nickel industry, while entrenching labour abuses and environmental damage. aftinet.org.au/us-tariff-pr...

Russian oligarchs are using ISDS to sue EU countries over sanctions imposed after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, claiming over $30 billion in compensation. aftinet.org.au/russian-olig...

Trump has ordered the US to withdraw from 66 international organisations, including UNCTAD, the UN’s lead trade and development body, marking one of the largest pullbacks from multilateral institutions in modern history. aftinet.org.au/trump-orders...

It took ten weeks from the government announcing it and over a year after hearings, but the decision in the Clive Palmer ISDS case is now public. Find out more here: aftinet.org.au/isds-tribuna...

Just weeks before the US' military strikes on Venezuela, Halliburton quietly filed a $200m arbitration claim against the Venezuelan state, seeking compensation for losses caused by US sanctions. aftinet.org.au/halliburton-...

YouTube video by Sahita Institute Webinar : Unpacking the ASEAN-Canada Free Trade Agreement (ACAFTA)

Canada and ASEAN are negotiating a new trade deal, but communities are raising alarms about ISDS provisions being included. Civil society groups from both regions held a webinar on why ISDS must be rejected. Watch the recording here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=gD6O...

The UK has agreed to a 25% rise in wholesale medicine prices after US tariff threats. Australia must not follow and must protect the PBS and reject Trump's pressure. aftinet.org.au/australia-re...

A new report shows that US "tariff deals" and trade arrangements are increasingly being used to push countries to alter how they domestically regulate the digital economy. aftinet.org.au/report-shows...

New analysis by AFTINET convener Dr Patricia Ranald examines the first year of Trump’s trade policies, linking neoliberal trade failures, inequality and the rise of coercive tariffs. aftinet.org.au/analysis-fir...

Thailand’s choice to reinstate mining licences during ISDS arbitration shows how investor-state lawsuits can reshape national policy, even before a verdict. aftinet.org.au/kingsgate-th...