The Swiss Federal Council announced June 10 that it will adopt the EU's sixth Russian sanctions package, which includes a ban on Russian oil imports. The sanctions package also designates over 100 Russian and Belarusian individuals and entities, making the Swiss sanctions list identical to the EU's; removes four Russian and Belarusian banks from SWIFT, the interbank payment and messaging system; and expands the export ban on goods that could aid Russia's military.
The U.K. released guidance on how it collects data on its Russia sanctions regime. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office published sections on the sanctions' legislation, data collected "post invasion," individual designations, estimates of oligarchs' net worths, oligarchs' family members and sanctions on entities.
The U.K.'s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation released a General License June 10 permitting certain activity for retail banking services. The license permits non-designated individuals to use retail banking services of a sanctioned Russian or Belarusian credit or financial institution if the payments are made or received are meant for that individual's personal use and the total value of the payments made June 10 to Sept. 10 doesn't exceed $60,000. The license permits such action until Sept. 10. A relevant institution can process these payments, the license said.
Export Compliance Daily is providing readers with the top stories from last week in case you missed them. You can find any article by searching the title or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.
The Bureau of Industry and Security is considering revising its voluntary self-disclosure review process to focus on “more serious” disclosures, said Matthew Axelrod, BIS’s top enforcement official. Axelrod, speaking during a June 14 Regulations and Procedures Technical Advisory Committee meeting, said the change could better dedicate the agency’s time to VSDs that warrant more attention.
The U.K.'s Department of International Trade released guidance on how to comply with the myriad of trade restrictions and sanctions that apply to British businesses that trade with Russia. The guidance covers sectoral sanctions, export and import bans and licensing, tariffs on Russian and Belarusian goods, financial sanctions and transport sanctions.
A group of European countries not in the EU aligned with a series of sanctions decisions implemented by the bloc relating to Russia and Belarus' invasion of Ukraine and to ISIL (Da'esh) and al-Qaida, the European Council announced. Groups of countries aligned with five recent sanctions moves relating to the war in Ukraine and one recent move over ISIL and al-Qaida.
Japan imposed another wave of sanctions on Russia, laying out an export ban of certain goods used to support industrial infrastructure, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry announced June 10, according to an unofficial translation. The export ban covers wood and wood products, steel storage tanks, hand or processing tools and machines, electrical equipment, trains, bulldozers and trucks. The restrictions will enter into force June 17.
The U.S. this week spoke with China to again warn it about helping Russia avoid international sanctions, a senior administration official said. During a June 13 meeting between U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and Chinese Politburo Member Yang Jiechi, Sullivan “reiterated concerns that the United States has raised repeatedly with China with respect to certain kinds of assistance to Russia,” the official said during a call with reporters. Although U.S. officials said they haven’t yet seen signs that China is helping Moscow evade sanctions, the U.S. has publicly and privately warned Beijing it will face severe penalties if it does so, including secondary sanctions and strict export controls (see 2203140009).
Some Russian airlines are considering relocating to Turkey to skirt sanctions that so far have stopped them from leasing aircraft and accessing maintenance and repair facilities. Pegas Touristik, owner of Nordwind Airlines, and Anex Tourism Group, operator of Azur Air, have had discussions with leasing companies in Turkey about getting planes, according to people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reported June 8. Azur Air and Nordwind primarily ferry Russian tourists to marquee locations and are controlled by Turkish businessmen. Since the carriers are not sanctioned, their relocation wouldn't violate the restrictions, Bloomberg said. The EU's sanctions led to companies terminating leases to airlines in Russia and banned the carriers from flying in European airspace.