The Office of Foreign Assets Control issued Russia-related general licenses 7A, 26A, 31 and 32 on May 5. The licenses allow emergency overflight and landings of U.S. aircraft in Russia and the filing and prosecution of infringement of various intellectual property protection, as well as the wind-down of transactions with Amsterdam Trade Bank NV and Sberbank subsidiaries through 12:01 a.m. EDT July 12. OFAC also published one new frequently asked question on Afghanistan-related sanctions and updated one FAQ on Ukraine-/Russia-related sanctions.
The EU rolled out its sixth package of sanctions on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine that includes an import ban on all Russian oil, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced in a May 4 speech. She said, according to her written remarks prepared for delivery, that the sanctions package also includes designations of high-ranking military officers including those who committed "war crimes" in Bucha and "the inhuman siege" of Mariupol; the removal of Sberbank and two other leading Russian banks from SWIFT, the interbank messaging and payment system; a ban on three Russian state-owned broadcasting companies; and an export ban on accountancy, consultancy and "spin doctor" services.
The U.K. will investigate whether British-made weapons parts are being used by Russia in its war in Ukraine, The Guardian reported May 2. The U.K. probe stems from a report by the Royal United Services Institute, which said Ukrainian armed forces recovered Russian weapons and systems with a “‘consistent pattern’ of dependence on foreign-made components,” including from the U.K. Although the RUSI report didn’t suggest any “wrongdoing” by U.K. manufacturers, it still “raised concerns that parts made in the UK could still find their way to Russia” despite strict export controls and sanctions.
Fiji's High Court in a May 3 order gave the U.S. and local authorities permission to seize the Amadea, a $325 million mega-yacht whose ownership is in dispute. The U.S. said sanctioned Russian billionaire Suleyman Kerimov owns the yacht. A lawyer representing the company that the vessel is registered under told Bloomberg the yacht is owned by another businessman not on any sanctions lists. The High Court further gave lawyers representing this second businessman until May 4 to file a stay order, Bloomberg reported. The U.K. and the EU in March sanctioned Kerimov for his ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The U.S. sanctioned him in 2018.
A bill that would require the State Department to report to Congress on whether China is helping Russians "evade or circumvent United States sanctions or multilateral sanctions and export controls," or whether China is inhibiting onsite export control end-use checks within its borders, passed the House of Representatives on a 394-3 vote on April 27. The Assessing Xi’s Interference and Subversion Act was sponsored by Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky. , who said after its passage, "We need a full report on the extent of the collaboration between Russia and China to inform the public and enable lawmakers to begin positioning the U.S. to overcome this geopolitical challenge.” If the bill becomes law, the first report would be due in 30 days, and then reports would be due every 90 days after that.
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A lack of guidance from the Bureau of Industry and Security on its recent Russia-related foreign direct product rules is creating compliance “chaos” for companies operating in the region (see 2203070039), Torres Trade Law said in an April alert. The firm said businesses have been “left to fend” for themselves “when it comes to compliance with the new FDP rules,” partly because BIS hasn’t yet published any enforcement actions or settlements for either rule.
The U.K.'s Russia sanctions pertaining to internet-related matters went into effect April 29, imposing new restrictions on trade in services, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said. The sanctions move mandates that social media companies must take "reasonable steps" to stop the content generated directly on the platform or shared on the platform by a sanctioned individual. Further, internet service providers, including both fixed and wireless broadband providers, must also take reasonable steps to stop users of the service in the U.K. from accessing websites "provided by a designated person" (i.e., URL blocking). App stores also must take steps to stop users in the U.K. from accessing an application provided by a designated individual.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control has issued Russia-related sanctions General Licence 30. The license authorizes transactions involving new debt or new equity with Gazprom Germania through 12:01 a.m. EDT pn Sept. 30. Prior to the license, Directive 3 had blocked new debt and equity transactions with Gazprom-related entities, and several other Russian financial institutions, after March 26.
The EU will look to ban Russian oil by year's end, placing restrictions on imports gradually until all Russian oil is banned, Bloomberg reported April 30. In addition, the EU will look to sanction more banks from Russia and Belarus, including Sberbank, to be cut off from SWIFT, the international interbank messaging and payment system, Bloomberg reported. The U.S. and U.K. both already have restrictions on Sberbank.