Ten countries aligned themselves with the European Union's decision to sanction eight individuals under the bloc's Nicaragua sanctions regime, the European Council said. North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia will now also place the restrictive measures on the eight individuals listed for undermining the rule of law in the country (see 2108020027).
After talks with the Commerce Department broke down over when Hong Kong-based apparel company Changji Esquel Textile (CJE) could be dropped from the agency's entity list, CJE resumed its litigation against the designation in federal court. The company, part of the Esquel group, on Aug. 27 filed a motion to re-set a hearing on a preliminary injunction against its placement on the list.
China could be an important economic and diplomatic lifeline for the Taliban as the group takes over the Afghan government and faces a range of sanctions (see 2108260055), the German Marshall Fund said Aug. 27. Beijing has power to sway decisions by the United Nations Security Council and is “more comfortable threatening its veto” on UNSC sanctions and embargo issues, which could give it leverage over the Taliban, the GMF said in a post written by China experts Bonnie Glaser and Andrew Small. “In a context where the Taliban know they will not receive real economic backing from the West -- at least not without conditions they will find unacceptable -- China is one of the few places they can turn.”
The Office of Foreign Assets Control is alerting users of its website and sanctions list data files of upcoming technical changes. The agency is beginning its annual renewal of the public certificate for its website, including its sanctions list downloads, and said its existing certificate will be replaced Sept. 1 at 9 p.m. The process will take about three to six hours, OFAC said. Users may need to update their configuration to trust the renewed certificate “if your application pins or otherwise trusts the serial number of the existing certificate as part [of] your application functionality,” OFAC said. OFAC said all applications should trust the new certificate by Sept. 1 to “prevent loss in functionality.” The notice includes a link to the new certificate and renewing instructions.
Although it prefers multilateralism, the Biden administration will likely continue to use secondary sanctions when coordination with allies isn’t possible, the Center for a New American Security said Aug. 26. But the think tank said the strategy may present challenges, especially with the rise of new blocking statutes designed to counteract the effects of extraterritorial sanctions. While the European Union’s blocking statute “has not been effective” because of enforcement and implementation issues (see 2108020030), CNAS pointed to China’s recently introduced blocking regulations, which could present compliance challenges for multinational companies (see 2107080057 and 2108040031). Russia has also drafted its own rules to penalize firms that comply with U.S. sanctions, although they haven't been enacted, CNAS said.
A Romanian bank and its U.S. parent company were fined about $860,000 by the Office of Foreign Assets Control for violating U.S. sanctions against Iran and Syria, OFAC said in an enforcement notice. Romania-based First Bank SA processed nearly 100 transactions worth about $3.5 million through U.S. banks on behalf of sanctioned parties, the notice said. The bank continued to process transactions for Iranian customers after it was acquired by U.S.-based JC Flowers in 2018.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control fined the United Kingdom-based Bank of China more than $2.3 million for processing more than 100 transactions that violated then-U.S. sanctions against Sudan, according to an enforcement order. The bank illegally exported financial services from the U.S. when it processed about $40 million worth of transactions through the U.S. financial system on behalf of parties in Sudan, OFAC said Aug. 26.
Switzerland's Federal Department of Economic Affairs delisted three people from its sanctions regime in two sanctions modification notices. Sayed Shamsuddin Borborudi of Iran, Bion Na Tchongo of Guinea-Bissau and Paulo Sunsai of Guinea-Bissau were removed in the two separate actions. All three were also delisted by the European Union in the past two months (see 2108100012 and 2107300046).
The State Department's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls will hold a webinar Sept. 16 on submitting registration renewals and amendments in the Defense Export Control and Compliance System. The session will include a question-and-answer period and other tips and tricks for using DECCS. The Aug. 26 notice includes login information for the webinar.
Although the U.S. should continue to impose severe sanctions against the Taliban, some collaboration with Afghanistan and other adversaries in the Middle East may be required to deliver humanitarian aid to Afghan citizens, experts said.