The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week issued a new frequently asked question addressing the service provision price cap on Russian oil. New FAQ 1109 explains that petroleum products loaded prior to Feb. 5 and unloaded prior to April 1 are not subject to the price cap. The FAQ also provides an example of a permissible transaction: A U.S. commodities trader signs a contract on Jan. 1 to purchase Russian petroleum products for shipment to a jurisdiction that has not prohibited the import of those products. The trader arranges for the petroleum products to be loaded onto a vessel, which is loaded on Feb. 1 and a bill of lading is issued. The products are then shipped and discharged at the port of destination on Feb. 15. "U.S. insurance companies provide cover for this shipment/voyage and pay out any related claims, as appropriate," OFAC said.

President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy planned to discuss sanctions and export controls in their Dec. 21 meeting, a senior administration officials told reporters in a call this week previewing their meeting. The two leaders planned to talk about “the sanctions and export controls that we have imposed and will continue to tighten and reinforce that have placed significant costs on Russia’s economy and Russia’s defense industrial base,” the official said. Biden and Zelenskyy also planned to speak about defense and military items the U.S. will continue to send Ukraine.

Canada this week imposed another round of sanctions against Hatian elites for “significant corruption,” targeting two former ministers for enabling criminal gang activity. The designations target Berto Dorcé and Liszt Quitel, who Canada said also are involved in money laundering and “other acts of corruption.” Canada earlier this month sanctioned three people in Haiti for providing support to armed gangs (see 2212060008).

Canada this week launched its first steps to seize and pursue the forfeiture of sanctioned Russian assets. This is the “first time that Canada is using its new authorities that allow the government to pursue the seizure of assets belonging to sanctioned persons,” said Canada, which will look to seize $26 million from Granite Capital Holdings Ltd., a company owned by sanctioned Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich. Canada said it's the first G-7 country “to implement such measures, demonstrating its strong commitment to Ukraine, its reconstruction and holding accountable those who have profited from and supported President [Vladimir] Putin’s regime.”

The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week published its Illicit Drug Trade Sanctions Regulations. The regulations implement Executive Order 14059, “Imposing Sanctions on Foreign Persons Involved in the Global Illicit Drug Trade,” issued on Dec. 15, 2021. OFAC said it intends to supplement the regulations with a more comprehensive set, which may include additional guidance and general licenses. The regulations are in effect Dec. 20.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Dec. 16 removed 19 entries from its Specially Designated Nationals list. The entries were sanctioned for counter-narcotics reasons and include people with entities with addresses in Mexico and Colombia. The primary goal for sanctions is behavioral change and the delisted individuals demonstrated a change in behavior and circumstances, a Treasury spokesperson said Dec. 16, adding that the delisted persons are no longer "engaged in sanctionable activities." The spokesperson also said most of the companies deleted from the SDN List are "now defunct."

The Office of Foreign Assets Control designated 18 entities related to Russia's financial services sector, according to a Dec. 15 press release. The State Department also issued a set of Russia sanctions, primarily targeting oligarch Vladimir Potanin, three members of his immediate family and his business network, the department said in a Dec. 15 press release.

The U.K.’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation notified industry this week that it has removed an expired general license that authorized certain energy payments related to Russia’s Gazprombank. The license took effect in April and expired in October.

The State Department recently added four people as Specially Designated Global Terrorists, according to a notice released Dec. 14. The designations apply to Osama Mehmood, Atif Yahya Ghouri and Muhammad Maruf, leaders of al-Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent, and Qari Amjad, a leader of Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control designated Jose Calderon Rijo, leader of a Dominican Republic-based criminal organization, for engaging in major drug trafficking, according to a Dec. 14 news release. In addition to drug trafficking, Rijo's organization allegedly engages in money laundering and public corruption. The organization directly controls several drug trafficking routes into the U.S. and is "one of the most prolific drug trafficking organizations in the Caribbean," OFAC said. Calderon Rijo was arrested and charged with drug trafficking offenses by Dominican Republic law enforcement authorities in 2012 but continued to oversee the organization from prison. In September, a grand jury in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida charged him with multiple drug trafficking offenses.