The White House administrative action bans all commercial imports of African elephant ivory, including antiques, as well as all commercial exports -- except for bona fide antiques and certain other items.

The outlawed ivory trade is mostly fueled by demand in Asia and the Middle East, where elephant tusks and rhino horns are used in traditional medicine and to make ornaments.

Poaching has risen sharply in Africa in recent years where, besides targeting rhinos, gangs eyeing lucrative international markets have slaughtered whole herds of elephants for their tusks.

"This ban is the best way to help ensure that US markets do not contribute to the further decline of African elephants in the wild," the White House said in a statement yesterday.

It said federal departments and agencies would immediately take actions to, among other things, clarify what constitutes an antique.

"To qualify as an antique, an item must be more than 100 years old and meet other requirements under the Endangered Species Act."

"The onus will now fall on the importer, exporter, or seller to demonstrate that an item meets these criteria."

Other measures include limiting to two the number of African elephant sport-hunted trophies that can be imported by an individual each year.

The crackdown on ivory is a key aspect of a new national strategy for combating wildlife trafficking, also unveiled Tuesday, that has been in the works for some time.

During a trip to Tanzania last year, President Barack Obama signed an executive order for a USD 10 million programme to reduce the practice in Africa.

That led to the setting up of a task force to develop the strategy to crack down on the lucrative trade -- estimated to be worth between USD 7 and USD 10 billion a year.

"The United States will continue to lead global efforts to protect the world's iconic animals and preserve our planet's natural beauty for future generations," the White House said.

America is one of the world's largest markets for wildlife products, both legal and illegal, according to senior administration officials.

"Much of the trafficking in ivory and other wildlife products either passes through or ends up in the United States and so we are committed to putting an end to the illegal trade in elephant ivory and also other wildlife products," one official told reporters on a conference all.

Another said that, under the ban, it would be legal to own items made from ivory and gift these to your children or grandchildren -- but it would not be legal to sell them.