Chinese companies are likely to end up buying Nvidia chips despite reports that Beijing has ordered its top firms to cease those purchases, said Jake Sullivan, former national security adviser to President Joe Biden.

Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., has put forth several changes to try to soften opposition to a bill that would require U.S. manufacturers of advanced AI chips to make their products available to American firms before selling them to China and other "countries of concern," a supporter of such restrictions said Oct. 24.

The U.K. released a new general sanctions license to cover certain legal services from Oct. 29 through April 28. Part A of the license establishes that the payment of legal fees and expenses must be only for legal services relating to the representation of a sanctioned party that was entered into prior to the date of the sanctioned party's designation. Legal fees under Part A can't exceed $2.66 million. Part B lays out the conditions for use of the license for legal services that aren't "based on a prior obligation."

The U.K.'s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation is reminding traders to submit frozen asset reports to OFSI by Nov. 30 if they hold or control funds or economic resources belonging to or owned, held or controlled by a sanctioned person. Those reports should include details of all funds or economic resources frozen in the U.K. and overseas "where these funds or economic resources are subject to UK financial sanctions legislation," OFSI said in an Oct. 23 email to industry. The reports should also include the value of all those assets as of close of business on Sept. 30. "Where the funds or economic resources relate to shares, securities, or other debt or payment instruments, the GBP value should be provided in your report."

Beijing objected to the EU’s new Russia-related sanctions package, approved this week, saying it “strongly deplores and firmly rejects the EU’s repeated illicit unilateral sanctions against Chinese companies over Russia-related issues.” A Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson said the country “lodged protests with the EU side.”

Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, has been working with the Treasury Department to sanction Colombia's President Gustavo Petro and his "associates and enablers" for their suspected role in drug trafficking, the lawmaker said late Oct. 22.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee ranking member Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., urged the Trump administration late Oct. 22 to increase sanctions on the “shadow fleet” of tankers Russia uses to get around the international price cap on its oil.

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., are working together to ensure that their bill to restrict U.S. outbound investment in China clears its last major hurdle in Congress, Cornyn said late Oct. 22.

EU member states this week signed off on a new package of Russia-related sanctions that will ban imports of Russian liquefied natural gas, designate more shadow fleet vessels, target more Russian and foreign banks, introduce new export controls and more. The package, proposed in September (see 2509190029) and approved this week, came just after the U.S. sanctioned major Russian energy companies Rosneft, Lukoil and their subsidiaries because Russia hasn't agreed to a peace deal to end its war in Ukraine (see 2510220050).

The U.S. should follow up its new Russia energy sanctions against Rosneft and Lukoil with more designations in the coming weeks, said John Herbst, senior director of the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center, in a commentary published by the Atlantic Council. To push for an end to the Russia-Ukraine war, Trump should “prepare for a monthslong ratcheting up of pressure on Moscow,” Herbst said. “At the moment, all [Russian President Vladimir] Putin sees for sure is another round of sanctions. It must not be the last round.”