Rosatom, a Russian state nuclear corporation, has worked to supply Russia’s defense industry with controlled components, technology and raw material for missile fuel, The Washington Post reported Jan. 20. The company has offered to provide goods to the Russian military and Russian weapons manufacturers that are subject to sanctions, the report said, including Almaz-Antey, a missile systems producer, and NPK Tekhmash, a manufacturer of unguided bombs and multiple missile launch systems. Although Rosatom has “long presented itself as a civilian entity operating nuclear power plants in commercial partnerships across the globe,” Russia’s war in Ukraine is “exposing how closely the company” is “intertwined” with Russia’s military-industrial complex, the report said. Rosatom told the paper all of its claims “are completely untrue.”

The U.S. plans to impose new sanctions on Russia’s Wagner Group this week, including by designating it a significant Transnational Criminal Organization, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters Jan. 20. Kirby said the sanctions will target the private military company’s support network “across multiple continents” and “recognize the transcontinental threat that Wagner poses, including through its ongoing pattern of serious criminal activity.”

The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Cooperative Foundation along with five of its board members, Iran's deputy minister of intelligence and security, and four senior IRGC commanders.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control removed one individual, Hanna Khalifeh, across three separate entries from its Specially Designated Nationals List, according to a Jan. 19 announcement. Khalifeh was listed on the SDN List for counterterrorism reasons. OFAC didn't immediately provide more information.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control Jan. 17 again extended a general license that continues to delay an exemption that would authorize certain transactions related to Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A. General License 5J, which replaced GL 5I, now authorizes certain transactions with PdVSA involving an 8.5% bond on or after April 20. The agency also updated a frequently asked question to reflect the change. The previous license was set to allow those transactions to occur on or after Jan. 20.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week updated three Russia-related general licenses and four frequently asked questions.

Canada last week announced another set of sanctions against people in Haiti, targeting two Haitian “elites” who the country said enable the activity of armed criminal gangs. The designations apply to Charles Saint-Remy, a businessman and associate of former president Michel Martelly, and Arnel Belizaire, a former parliament member. Canada has sanctioned a range of people in Haiti over the past several months for corruption and drug trafficking (see 2212200016, 2212060008, 2211210026 and 2211040064).

The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week renewed a general license that authorizes certain transactions related to safety and environmental measures for certain sanctioned vessels. General License 21B, which replaces GL 21A, is valid through 12:01 a.m. April 13. The license was scheduled to expire Jan. 14 (see 2212140028)). OFAC also updated Frequently Asked Question 1097 to reflect the update.

The U.S. has already seen “early progress” from the G-7 price cap on Russian oil in limiting Russia’s energy revenue, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said during a meeting with Canadian officials this week. Although the cap has been in effect for only about a month (see 2212050014 and 2211230047), she said Russian officials have “admitted that the price cap is cutting into” the country’s revenue and global energy markets have “remained well-supplied.” Yellen said “public reports indicate that countries are using the price cap to drive steep bargains on the price of Russian oil imports.”

Canada this week sanctioned four former or current Sri Lankan officials for “gross and systematic violations of human rights” during the country’s civil conflict from 1983 to 2009. The designations target two former presidents -- Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Mahinda Rajapaksa -- as well as military officials Sunil Ratnayake and Chandana Prasad Hettiarachchi. Canada said it imposed the sanctions because of Sri Lanka’s failure to “fulfill its commitment to establish a meaningful accountability process” for its human rights violations.