The U.K. in two June 16 notices added entries to its sanctions regimes on Russia and Myanmar. Under the Russia sanctions list, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation sanctioned 12 people and corrected one entry. Under the Myanmar sanctions list, OFSI added six entries.

The European Council announced in three separate notices April 28 that a group of non-EU European countries aligned with the union's recent sanctions moves on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine; on Iran; and on Myanmar.

Singapore announced it will block all transfers of goods to Myanmar for items deemed to have potential military applications, Singapore Customs said April 25. The measures come as Singapore attempts to "ensure regional peace and security" and block the transfer of military products to places in the region "where there is a serious risk that the items may be used for violence against unarmed civilians."

The U.S. and Canada issued more sanctions last week against people and entities in Myanmar responsible for supplying defense equipment to the country’s military regime. The Office of Foreign Assets Control targeted five people and five entities, including several arms dealers and their companies, for supporting the regime. Canada sanctioned four suppliers and two entities, including Myanmar Chemical & Machinery and Yatanarpon Aviation Support. The U.K. announced similar sanctions (see 2203280009).

The U.K. added three individuals and three entities to its Myanmar sanctions regime, in a March 25 notice. The individuals are Aung Moe Myint, Belarus' honorary consul to Myanmar; Htun Aung, member of the State Administration Council; and Aung Hlaing Oo, managing director of Myanmar Chemical & Machinery. The entities are Miya Win, Dynasty International and Myanmar Chemical & Machinery.

Myanmar recently published new labeling requirements for imported prepackaged food, the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service said in a March 17 report. The change requires food labels to include certain minimum information, including a list of ingredients, the country of origin, date marking and instructions for use. The requirements will take effect Jan. 20, 2023.

The European Union added 40 individuals and entities to its sanctions regimes on ISIL and al-Qaida, Syria, Myanmar and entities involved in the Russian State Duma elections in Crimea. Under the ISIL sanctions list, the European Council added two individuals and two groups. The restrictive measures now apply to al-Qaida in the Indian subcontinent and its leader Osama Mahmood, along with Aziz Azam, spokesperson of ISIL-K -- the Islamic State's Khorasan Province -- and Da'esh Hind Province, an ISIL-affiliated group in India. The council said the sanctioned parties are planning attacks in Afghanistan and pose a serious threat to "regional and international stability."

President Joe Biden extended a national emergency that authorizes certain sanctions against people and entities in Myanmar, the White House said Feb. 7. The “situation” resulting from the military coup in 2021 continues to pose a threat to U.S. national security and foreign policy, the White House said The emergency was extended for one year beyond Feb. 10.

The U.K.'s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Legal Directorate released its 2021 annual review, which includes the directorate's sanctions practices. The report discusses the sanctions work on the U.K.'s new corruption sanctions regime and 2021 sanctions updates on Afghanistan and Myanmar. The Legal Directorate said it helped carve out the humanitarian exemption to the Afghanistan sanctions regime and it drafted the 2021 Myanmar sanctions regime in response to the coup in the Southeast Asian country.

The U.K.'s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation added three individuals to its Myanmar sanctions list in a Jan. 31 regulation. Thida Oo, Myanmar attorney general; Thein Soe, Union Election Commission chair; and Tin Oo, Anti-Corruption Commission in Myanmar chair, will now be subject to an asset freeze and travel ban. Separately, OFSI amended the entry for former Special Forces Commander Saadi Qadhafi, under its Libya sanctions regime, still subjecting him to an asset freeze.