The United Nations Security Council on April 29 revised two entries on its Libya sanctions list. The changes revised identifying information for the entries.
The United Kingdom's Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation updated two listings on its Libya sanctions regime in an April 30 financial sanctions notice. Information was updated for Abd Al-Rahman Al-Milad and Mohammed Muammar Qadhafi, and both entries are still subject to an asset freeze.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control moved its Non-Specially Designated Nationals Communist Chinese Military Companies (NS-CCMC) List from a temporary PDF to a “standard OFAC list file format,” the agency said April 30. The list data will now be included in the agency’s “Non-SDN Consolidated Data Files” for machine processing, and “human-readable versions” will be available on a dedicated landing page. OFAC stressed that the change is “only an administrative, technical action.”
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on April 30 deleted five entries from its Specially Designated Nationals List. The entries were listed with addresses in Iraq. OFAC didn’t immediately provide more information.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control fined a Texas money transfer company more than $34,000 for committing over 350 sanctions violations, OFAC said April 29. The company, MoneyGram Payment Systems, voluntarily disclosed the violations in 2017 (see 2011040041) after it provided services to blocked people in U.S. prisons and processed transactions on behalf of a sanctioned person and people doing business in Syria. OFAC said MoneyGram “had reason to know” the transactions “may” have exposed them to sanctions but followed through with them because of screening failures or “based on an erroneous misunderstanding” of its compliance obligations.
The Bureau of Industry and Security fined a U.S. thermal imaging camera producer more than $300,000 after it violated the Export Administration Regulations by providing false and incomplete statements in support of a commodity jurisdiction (CJ) request (see 2103040065). The company, FLIR Systems, sought a determination that one of its newly developed products was subject to the EAR rather than the State Department’s International Traffic in Arms Regulations and withheld information in order to support that determination, BIS said. Along with the fine, FLIR agreed to conduct two BIS-monitored internal audits and won’t be granted export licenses until the audits are completed and the fine is paid, BIS said in an April 29 notice.
The EU General Court vacated 2017 and 2020 acts from the European Council designating Aisha Gadhafi, the daughter of former Libyan President Moammar Gadhafi, for its sanctions regime, in an April 21 decision. Finding that the EU did not provide individual, specific and concrete reasons as to why she remained on the sanctions list, the court removed her name. The European Council relied on public statements from Gadhafi in 2011 and 2013 calling for the overthrow of the Libyan authorities, but the court found these statements unconvincing. Seeing as her circumstances have changed, the EC needed to show why the sentiments held in the statements still hold today, the court said.
As U.S.-China technology competition grows, Congress may consider mandating stronger export controls over U.S. research and semiconductor equipment, the Congressional Research Service said in a report this month. Congress might consider “assessing” whether Chinese efforts to target U.S. research and development capabilities “merits additional government oversight and controls over U.S. basic and applied research,” the report said. Congress might also consider more restrictions over “technical expertise that U.S. industry shares with China over open source technology platforms” and more controls over exports of semiconductor equipment, tools and software. The Commerce Department is reviewing candidate controls for its emerging and foundational technology process (see 2103190037) and has received pushback from universities that are concerned those controls could restrict fundamental research (see 2012020044).
The Environmental Protection Agency released a final rule April 29 setting new significant new use rules (SNURs) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for two chemical substances subject to premanufacture notices (PMNs), and a microorganism that was the subject of a Microbial Commercial Activity Notice (MCAN). As a result of the SNURs, persons planning to manufacture, import or process any of the chemical substances or microorganisms for an activity designated as a significant new use by this rule are required to notify EPA at least 90 days in advance. Importers of chemicals and microorganisms subject to these SNURs will need to certify their compliance with the SNUR requirements, and exporters of these chemical substances and microorganisms will now become subject to export notification requirements. The final rule takes effect June 29. The SNURs cover the following:
The United Kingdom published guidance April 29 ro assist individuals and businesses with complying with the Myanmar sanctions regime. The document includes best practice for complying with the asset freeze and travel ban, enforcing the prohibitions and circumstances in which the sanctions don't apply.