The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week redesignated Garantex, a virtual currency exchange with operations in Moscow, and sanctioned other companies and people that it said are involved in malicious cyber activities.
The export licensing pauses and delays since the Trump administration took over in January are in conflict with the president’s stated goal of boosting American exports and opening new markets for U.S. companies, said Ron Kirk, a former U.S. trade representative.
While the U.S. government is going to “great lengths” to ease broad-based sanctions on Syria to allow normal business ties with the war-torn country to resume, sanctions on specific individuals and entities in Syria will probably remain in place for years to come to ensure bad actors can't access their frozen assets, according to a former Treasury Department official.
The Republican-led House Select Committee on China said Aug. 14 that a new trade agreement the Trump administration is negotiating with China should contain or exclude certain provisions to protect U.S. economic and national security.
Japan opened an antidumping duty investigation on hot-dipped galvanized steel coil, sheet and strip from South Korea and China, the ministries of Finance, and Economy, Trade and Industry jointly announced Aug. 13. The investigation will conclude within one year and will look at whether imports of the subject merchandise from South Korea and China injure the Japanese market.
China will impose a preliminary 75.8% antidumping duty on imports of Canadian canola seed effective Aug. 14, the Ministry of Commerce said, according to an unofficial translation. The ministry said its investigation revealed that China's domestic rapeseed industry "suffered substantial damage" from dumped Canadian rapeseed exports.
Haitian gang leader Jimmy Cherizier and U.S. citizen Bazile Richardson have been charged with violations of U.S. sanctions on Haiti, DOJ announced. Cherizier and Richardson were charged with "leading a conspiracy to transfer funds" from the U.S. to Cherizier to "fund his gang activities in Haiti in violation" of U.S. sanctions, DOJ said.
Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said Aug. 13 that the State Department’s newly released annual report on human rights highlights the Republic of Georgia’s crackdown on freedom of speech and association and underscores the need for Congress to approve a bill to sanction officials who undermine democracy in the country.
Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., said Aug. 13 that she welcomes the Trump administration’s newly revealed plans to designate the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization.
Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Calif., a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said Aug. 8 that he would oppose any possible weapons transfers to Azerbaijan, citing the country’s past “aggression” toward Armenia. His comment came the same day that the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a peace deal as well as bilateral economic agreements with the U.S.