China has met 71% of its 2020 purchase goals for U.S. agricultural commodities under the phase one trade deal, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in an “interim report.” The Oct. 23 report, released 11 days before the election, said the U.S. is on track for its “best year ever in sales to China.”
President Donald Trump notified Congress that he intends to formally remove Sudan from the State Sponsors of Terrorism List, the White House said Oct. 23. Sanctions and other trade restrictions on Sudan now include bans on arms exports, export controls over dual-use items, various financial and economic assistance prohibitions, and prohibitions on defense contracts, according to the State Department. The White House move came after Sudan promised to make reparations to families of victims of terror.
The Justice Department seized two websites being illegally used by a U.S.-sanctioned foreign terrorist group, it said Oct. 21. The Iran-backed Kata’ib Hizballah operated the websites, Aletejahtv.com and kataibhezbollah.com, as a “media arm,” Justice said. The group used the websites to publish videos, articles and photos to further its agenda, which includes “destabilizing Iraq and recruiting others to join their cause.”
The European Union sanctioned two people and one entity for a 2015 cyberattack against the German Federal Parliament, the E Council said Oct. 22. The designations target Russian intelligence officers Dmitry Sergeyevich Badin, Igor Olegovich Kostyukov and the “85th Main Centre for Special Services of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.” The United Kingdom applauded the move and will join the EU in enforcing the sanctions, it said Oct. 22.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned a Russian government research institution behind “destructive malware” that targets industrial safety systems, OFAC said Oct. 23. The designation targeted the State Research Center of the Russian Federation FGUP Central Scientific Research Institute of Chemistry and Mechanics, which was responsible for building tools that led to a Triton malware attack, OFAC said. The institution was sanctioned under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control amended the Cuban Assets Control Regulations to further deny the Cuban government’s access to remittance-related funds, OFAC said in a final rule released Oct. 23. The rule amends the scope of certain general licenses to remove “remittance-related general authorizations” involving entities on the Cuba Restricted List, OFAC said. The change will limit those agencies’ access to remittances, “including in their role as intermediaries or in their receipt of fees or commissions from processing remittance transactions.” The rule will take effect Nov. 27. The changes follow a set of new Cuba sanctions and restrictions announced by OFAC in September that created the Cuba Restricted List, placing restrictions on lodging, research and other activities (see 2009230029).
The Office of Foreign Assets Control announced a range of sanctions Oct. 22, designating Hizballah officials, the Iranian ambassador to Iraq and various Iranian entities for interfering in U.S. elections.
China plans to release an initial list of items subject to export restrictions under its new export control law (see 2010190033), its Ministry of Commerce said Oct. 22. China already has controls in place for certain dual-use, nuclear and military-related items but plans to issue more restrictions to “better fulfill relevant international obligations, adapt to the needs of export control work under the new situation, and safeguard [China’s] national security,” a ministry spokesperson said, according to an unofficial translation. “We will further improve and release the control list in due course.” The spokesperson said China learned from and modeled its regime after “international practices” of other control lists, and received more than 250 comments from companies, law firms and government agencies.
The State Department approved about $1.8 billion in military sales to Taiwan, drawing criticism from China, which threatened retaliation if the sales are not revoked. The sales, announced Oct. 21, include more than $1 billion worth of Standoff Land Attack Missile Expanded Response missiles, an estimated $367 million for MS-110 Recce Pods and about $436 million for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems M142 Launchers. The contractors are Boeing, Collins Aerospace and Lockheed Martin Missile and Fire Control, respectively.
The United Kingdom Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation revised entries for two people and three entities under its sanctions regime for the Democratic Republic of the Congo, OFSI said in an Oct. 20 notice. The notices revised identifying information for two former military officials in the region, a terrorist organization and two gold export companies.