The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Sept. 13 updated a narcotics-related entity on its Specially Designated Nationals List. The agency updated information for Hassein Eduardo Figueroa Gomez, first sanctioned in 2012 (see 12041305) for ties to a Mexican drug cartel.

The U.S. and allies should impose Magnitsky-style sanctions against Chinese artificial intelligence surveillance company Hikvision for its role in human rights violations, said Dahlia Peterson, a research analyst at Georgetown University's Center for Security and Emerging Technology. Although the sanctions would “inflame” U.S.-China tensions, Peterson said they would help increase economic pressure on the company, which is already on the Commerce Department’s Entity List.

With the price cap on Russian oil products set to take effect in December, trade and commodity experts expressed concern during a Sept. 9 panel at Brookings Institution. In his announcement of the measures, Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said the aim of the price cap is to limit profits from Russian oil sales and cut into revenue generated for Russia but in a way that won't cut into the overall availability of oil products. The cap will work by targeting services supporting ocean shipping, such as insurance and brokers.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control designated Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) and Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib for engaging in cyber-enabled activities against the U.S. and its allies, the Treasury Department said in a Sept. 9 news release. OFAC has added Khatib and MOIS to its Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control has designated an air transport service provider for its involvement in the shipment of Iranian unmanned aerial vehicles to Russia, according to a Sept. 8 press release. Additionally, OFAC is designating three companies and one individual involved in the research, development, production and procurement of Iranian UAV components.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Sept. 8 extended a Russia-related general license that authorizes the payment of certain taxes and import fees to the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, the National Wealth Fund of the Russian Federation or the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation despite the sanctions imposed on those entities. General License 13B, which replaces GL 13A (see 2205250054), extends the authorization through 12:01 a.m. EST on Dec. 7, 2022. The 13A license was scheduled to expire Sept. 30.

Twenty-seven House Republicans, led by Rep. Jim Banks of Indiana, asked CBP to defend its implementation of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, in light of a recent report from the Uyghur Human Rights Project (see 2209060033). They asked if any red jujube dates from Xinjiang have entered the U.S. since June 21, and if so, how many shipments have done so.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control is reissuing its Cyber-Related Sanctions Regulations, 31 CFR part 578, the office said in a Sept. 2 notice. The update replaces regulations published in abbreviated form on Dec. 31, 2015, "with a more comprehensive set of regulations that includes additional interpretive and definitional guidance, general licenses, and other regulatory provisions that will provide further guidance to the public." The regulations will become effective Sept. 6, the date they are set to be published in the Federal Register.

A group of European countries not in the EU aligned with a recent sanction move under the bloc's Russia sanctions regime, the European Council announced Aug. 25. In early August, the council added two individuals to the sanctions list for undermining the sovereignty of Ukraine and for advancing Russian interests over the annexation of Crimea. The countries of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway aligned with the decision, ensuring that their national policies conform to the decision, the council said.

Australia is conducting a review of 18 people and 14 entities designated under its North Korean sanctions regime to determine whether the sanctions should remain, the country’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said Aug. 26. The Australian designations expire after three years unless “declared by the Minister for Foreign Affairs to continue in effect.” The agency is accepting submissions from the designated people or entities until 5 p.m. Sept. 23.