The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week announced a $1.092 million settlement with an unnamed former U.S. government official for alleged violations of U.S. sanctions against Russia. The former official, who is also a lawyer, committed the violations while serving as the fiduciary of the family trust of a sanctioned Russian oligarch, OFAC said.

The Commerce Department is working with “all possible speed” to set up its AI exports program and is still accepting feedback on how best to shape it, said Brandon Remington, deputy undersecretary for policy at the International Trade Administration.

The U.S. announced charges against a group of business owners, their companies and associates for illegally exporting advanced Nvidia chips to China the same day President Donald Trump said he plans to ease export controls over those exact chips.

The State Department last week approved possible military sales to Lebanon, Denmark, Italy and South Korea, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said.

Switzerland is open to working closer with the U.S. on export controls, sanctions and investment security issues as part of a broader trade framework between the two countries, according to a draft negotiating mandate released by Switzerland’s Federal Council this month.

The Council of the European Union on Dec. 8 extended its sanctions on the Democratic Republic of the Congo for another year, pushing them to Dec. 12, 2026. The sanctions cover 31 individuals and two entities.

Canada last week lifted certain sanctions against Syria, removing the country from its List of Foreign State Supporters of Terrorism and taking Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham off the List of Terrorist Entities under the Canadian Criminal Code.

The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls published a "redline" document to highlight recent changes made to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations as a result of the agency’s ITAR reorganization effort. The revised document reflects changes made to the ITAR in light of DDTC’s removal of its arms embargo against Cambodia (see 2511060016) and its continued temporary suspension of restrictions on certain defense exports to Cyprus (see 2509080001). "Those changes are identified in the reorg redline by identifier 'Rev.17,'" DDTC said.

One year after being created, the U.K.’s Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation has “a number of investigations” underway and has received nearly 150 referrals or reports involving possible sanctions and export control violations, the agency said in its first annual report.

President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social late Dec. 8 that he has decided to allow the sale of Nvidia’s H200 AI chips to “approved customers” in China.