The European Commission last week amended two frequently asked questions under its Russia sanctions regime guidance. Under its asset freeze FAQs, the commission added FAQ 15, which says voting rights by shareholders with qualifying holdings in an EU ban should be viewed as an intangible economic resource given that they can be used to obtain funds, goods or services. Under the oil imports FAQ section, the commission added FAQ 2, which includes information on imports into the EU or the purchase or transfer of goods that originate in a third country but are mixed during transport with goods that originate in Russia.
The U.K.'s High Court of Justice in a Nov. 4 judgment adjourned a trial between VTB Commodities Trading and Petraco Oil over the delivery of oil cargo, according to a Nov. 8 post on the EU Sanctions blog. The U.K. sanctioned VTB in February, leading it to submit an application for a license to pay legal fees for the proceeding. The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation failed to process the application eight months after submission, leading VTB to apply to adjourn the trial that was set for May, given that the company could not make the legal payments. In the meantime, OFSI issued a General License over the provision of legal services under the Russia sanctions regime. The High Court considered the license, then adjourned the trial. The court said the trial should be resolved "in part because of the time required to obtain OFSI licences," ordering VTB to apply to OFSI for a license to cover adverse costs liability in the proceeding and to cover other costs not covered by the General License.
Russia's largest ports have seen freight volumes tank due to the EU's sanctions on Moscow, according to research from Vincent Stamer, an expert at the Kiel Institute for the World Economy. The St. Petersburg port saw an 85% plummet in container throughput in 2022 vs. 2021, with Stamer saying few containers are arriving at what used to be Russia's busiest port, Bloomberg reported. The Kiel Institute, a German economic think tank, showed that Russia brought in 24% fewer goods per month from June through August, compared with the same period last year, leaving a $4.5 billion monthly import gap.
The Congressional Research Service issued a report this month on Iran’s transfer of weapons to Russia for use in Ukraine, detailing the specific items that may have been sent and possible next steps for the U.S. The report noted Congress may look to push for more sanctions against any person or entity involved in the sales and is considering the Stop Iranian Drones Act, which would clarify U.S. sanctions policy on Iranian efforts to acquire unmanned drones. The House passed the bill in April (see 2204280007, 2112010019 and 2211020033).
The Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation division has identified nearly 50 people and entities for potential Russia-related sanctions violations as of September, the agency said in its annual report released last week. The division said it has worked as a “key player” in U.S. sanctions-related enforcement efforts against Russia, and its report includes several case examples of sanctions investigations, including its efforts that led to the September indictment of Viktor Zelinger, an alleged leader of an Eastern European organized crime syndicate linked to “high-level Russian mafia members.” An IRS official told reporters during a news conference last week that the agency has so far opened 20 criminal investigations into Russian sanctions evasion attempts, according to The Wall Street Journal.
New U.K. sanctions regulations will enter into force on Dec. 5. The measures move up the implementation date for import bans relating to Russian oil and oil products, from Dec. 31; bar the supply or delivery by ship of Russian oil and oil products from Russia to a third country or from a third country to another third country; ban the provision of financial services to facilitate the supply or delivery of Russian oil and oil products from Russia to a third country; grant exceptions to the measures where the banned oil and oil products originate in a non-Russian country and are not owned by a person connected with Russia and are only being loaded in, leaving or transiting through Russia; and give the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation the power to hit offenders with civil monetary penalties.
The U.K. issued a general license under its Russia sanctions regime pertaining to "transactions related to agricultural commodities including the provision of insurance and other services." The license permits agricultural commodities exporters or Department for International Trade license holders to receive funds from listed individuals and entities in connection with the export, sale, production and transport of agricultural commodities. These exporters and license holders can also transfer funds to relevant institutions in connection with the export of these goods, to U.K. corporates, to designated parties and to any other individual in connection with the export of agricultural commodities. The license was issued indefinitely, though the Treasury can revoke it at any time.
The semiconductor industry was disappointed the new U.S. export control rules involving China weren’t imposed multilaterally and were frustrated by the Commerce Department’s lack of engagement before the rules were announced, a chip industry executive said. Semiconductor companies also have received mixed messages from Commerce about how long it could take to convince allies to impose similar controls, a China technology expert said, and fear that China could retaliate before allies are brought on board.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control designated members of an international oil smuggling network that facilitated oil trades and generated revenue for Hezbollah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF), according to a Nov. 3 OFAC notice.
The U.K. issued a general license Nov. 2 under its Russia sanctions regime pertaining to Truphone. The license lets the company continue to provide services under existing arrangements and allows an individual or entity to carry out any activity needed for the effective termination of service contracts or obligations with Truphone. The company can pay remuneration, allowances and pensions to all British staff and reasonable fees for the functioning of the business. The license runs through Jan. 31.