The CEO of a sanctions-evading financial services company in Iran was sentenced to 23 months in prison for violating U.S. sanctions, the Justice Department said Oct. 15. Seyed Sajjad Shahidian, CEO of Payment24, helped Iranians conduct illegal transactions with businesses in the U.S., which included illegal exports of computer software, software licenses and computer servers. Shahidian was charged in May along with Payment24 Chief Operating Officer Vahid Vali for violating U.S. sanctions (see 2005190022). Shahidian pleaded guilty in June (see 2006170005).
The United Kingdom Office of Financial Sanction Implementation added one person to its Libya sanctions regime, an Oct. 15 notice said. The designation targets Yevgeniy Viktorovich Prigozhin, a Russian businessman with close links to the Wagner Group, for violating the United Nations arms embargo against Libya. The European Union sanctioned Prigozhin last week (see 2010150010).
The European Union sanctioned seven Syrian government officials for the “violent repression” of the Syrian population, the European Council said in an Oct. 16 news release. The designations target Syria’s Trade Minister Talal Al-Barazi, Culture Minister Loubana Mouchaweh, Education Minister Darem Taba’a, Justice Minister Ahmad Sayyed, Water Resource Minister Tammam Ra’ad, Finance Minister Kinan Yaghi and Transport Minister Zuhair Khazim. The EU’s Syria sanctions include a ban on oil trade, investment restrictions, asset freezes and export restrictions on certain equipment and technology to Syria.
If elected, Joe Biden will likely continue the U.S.’s strict export control and sanctions policy against China, Venezuela and Russia but may reverse U.S. sanctions against Iran, said Johann Strauss, a trade lawyer with Akin Gump. Biden would also approach trade restrictions more multilaterally as opposed to Trump’s tendency to pursue unilateral restrictions, Strauss said.
The United Kingdom Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation issued its quarterly report to Parliament on its operation of the U.K. asset freezing regime, an Oct. 14 notice said. The report contains statistics and information on U.K. sanctions January through March 2020.
The United Kingdom Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation amended one entry under its chemical weapons sanctions and two under its ISIL (Da’esh) and al-Qaida sanctions, Oct. 14 notices said. One amended entry is for Said Said, a “significant figure” in Syria’s chemical weapons programs. The U.K. also amended entries for Jamal Hussein Hassan Zeiniye, leader of the Al-Nusrah Front for the People of the Levant, and Sa'd Bin Sa'd Muhammad Shariyan Al-Ka’Bi under its ISIL (Da’esh) and al-Qaida sanctions.
Switzerland joined the U.S., the United Kingdom, the European Union and others (see 2010050010 and 2009300011) in imposing sanctions against Belarus for the country’s rigged presidential election, the EU Sanctions blog said in a post Oct. 14. Switzerland sanctioned the same 40 officials the EU designated earlier this month. The officials will be subject to asset freezes and travel bans.
The European Union and the United Kingdom sanctioned six Russian Federation officials and one entity for the poisoning of Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny, they said in Oct. 15 news releases. The sanctions target Andrei Veniaminovich Yarin, Sergei Vladilenovich Kiriyenko, Sergei Ivanovich Menyailo, Aleksandr Vasilievich Bortnikov, Pavel Anatolievich Popov and Aleksei Yurievich Krivoruchko. The sanctions also target Russia’s State Scientific Research Institute for Organic Chemistry and Technology.
The European Union on Oct. 15 sanctioned a Russian businessman for violating the United Nations arms embargo against Libya. The sanctions target Yevgeniy Viktorovich Prigozhin, who has “close links” to the Wagner Group, the EU said, a Russian paramilitary organization sanctioned by the U.S. The EU said Prigozhin supports the group’s activities in Libya, including delivering weapons and sending mercenaries into the country. He also is a funder of the Russian Internet Research Agency, which is trying to influence the U.S. presidential election,
The White House released a national strategy for critical and emerging technologies that it said will better synchronize agency efforts amid technology competition with China. The strategy builds on export control efforts carried out by the Commerce Department, a senior administration official said, and will allow government offices to better align their strategies as the U.S. restricts Chinese access to sensitive U.S. technologies.