March.24.2022
After the various measures taken by countries, international organizations and companies to pressure Russia to stop its aggression against Ukraine, it is now the turn of the antitrust enforcers of the European Competition Network (ECN) to make their contribution. They did so by publishing a joint statement on 22 March, in which they indicated that they would be pragmatic, if not flexible, in assessing the behaviour adopted by companies in response to the severe difficulties encountered in connection with the war. They emphasised that cooperation between companies to address war disruptions – for example to ensure the supply, purchase and fair distribution of scarce products and inputs, or to try to minimise the consequences of compliance with EU sanctions – would likely not be considered problematic under antitrust law. The European Antitrust Enforcers also added that they would not actively pursue those temporary and necessary cooperation measures, and that they would provide informal guidance to companies that had doubts about the compliance of such cooperation. However, the European Antitrust Enforcers pointed out that they would be ruthless with companies that take advantage of the crisis to collude at the expense of free competition. This initiative is reminiscent of the one they adopted in response to the COVID-19 crisis, which was perceived with some relief by companies placed under unprecedented constraints.