The Office of Foreign Assets Control on July 15 updated a Venezuela-related general license and amended a Venezuela-related frequently asked question. General License No. 5D, which replaced No. 5C, authorizes certain transactions related to Petroleos de Venezuela involving an 8.5% bond on or after Oct. 20. The FAQ clarifies which transactions are authorized by the license.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned three people and five entities involved in helping a Russian financier evade U.S. sanctions, OFAC said in a July 15 press release. The sanctions target Russia-based M Invest, its subsidiary Meroe Gold and two M Invest officials: Andrei Mandel and Mikhail Potepkin. OFAC also targeted Hong Kong-based Shine Dragon Group Limited, Shen Yang Jing Cheng Machinery Imp & Exp. Co., Zhe Jiang Jiayi Small Commodities Trade Company Limited and Shine Dragon Group director Igor Lavrenkov.

As part of its revised policy on gun suppressor exports (see 2007130014), the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls will not authorize suppressor shipments without an ultimate end-user listed on the license, according to a July 15 alert from Reeves & Dola. The law firm said it reached out to DDTC for clarification about its new policy and was told that suppressor exports licenses must list a specific end-user for the customer. “In other words, license applications that state ‘for commercial resale in NAMED COUNTRY’ as an end-use/end-user will not be acceptable for suppressors,” the alert said.

President Donald Trump’s executive order ending preferential treatment for Hong Kong details a range of sanctions authorities and export bans but includes a carve-out for certain defense exports authorized before the order was issued. The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls issued a July 15 guidance to clarify the new restrictions and answer industry questions.

The Commerce Department’s long-awaited proposed regulations on routed export transactions may not be issued until next year, a Census Bureau official said. Both Census and the Bureau of Industry and Security have been working closely on the rule but have struggled to pinpoint a release date. “I thought it would happen this year, but I'm going to go with probably 2021,” Kiesha Downs, chief of Census’ Foreign Trade Division’s regulations branch, said during a July 15 webinar hosted by Census. “It's just a matter of ironing out a couple more things.”

The Canada government issued the following trade-related notices as of July 15 (some may also be given separate headlines):

The United Kingdom announced a temporary reduced value-added tax rate for certain supplies in the hospitality and tourism sector to mitigate the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, KPMG said in a July 10 post. The measure, effective July 15 to Jan. 12, 2021, will reduce VAT from 20% to 5% for certain food and nonalcoholic drinks served in restaurants, pubs, bars, cafes and “similar premises” across the U.K., KPMG said. The reduced VAT also applies to take-out food and drinks from those suppliers, and to U.K. hotel accommodations and admission to “attractions” across the U.K.

China suspended imports of sheep, goats and their products from Israel due to an outbreak of sheep pox and goat pox in Israel’s Northern District, a July 13 notice said, according to an unofficial translation. Chinese customs will return or destroy sheep or goat imports from Israel, the notice said.

China announced a ban on certain animals and animal products from Rwanda due to a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in Rwanda’s Eastern Province, a July 13 notice said, according to an unofficial translation. The import ban applies to “cloven hoofed animals and their related products,” directly or indirectly from Rwanda, including products originating from those animals that have not been processed or are “still likely to spread disease although processed.” Customs authorities will return or destroy any imports, China said.

China criticized the Trump administration’s Xinjiang business advisory (see 2007010040) issued earlier this month, saying the guidance “seriously distorts the facts” and threatens to damage cooperation between U.S. and Chinese industries. The guidance -- which outlined export control, sanctions and forced labor risks for U.S. companies doing business in China’s Xinjiang region -- “undermines the stability of the global supply chain,” a Chinese Commerce Ministry spokesperson said July 14, according to an unofficial translation of a press release about a reporter's question on the topic. “This is bad for China, bad for the United States, and bad for the whole world,” the spokesperson said. “China will take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises.”