The EU Court of Justice in a May 12 opinion dismissed Evariste Boshab's challenge of the General Court's decision to uphold his placement on the EU's Democratic Republic of the Congo sanctions list, according to an unofficial translation. Boshab had argued at the General Court and then at the ECJ that the European Council infringed on his right to be heard during the proceeding that saw his continued listing. The EU's high court said a formal hearing wasn't needed to guarantee an individual's right to be heard.
The EU could cap the price of natural gas to skirt high energy costs if Russia limits or cuts off the flow of gas, Bloomberg reported May 15. The European Commission is considering a package of energy-market intervention steps to replace Russian gas, according to a draft document seen by Bloomberg News. Concerns over Russian retaliation to EU sanctions grow as Russia's economy suffers from restrictions placed on it after its invasion of Ukraine. Importers are worried over how to pay for Russian gas while avoiding breaching sanctions, Bloomberg said.
The Commerce Department again renewed a temporary export denial order for Mahan Airways because the airline continues to violate the order and the Export Administration Regulations, according to a May 13 notice. Mahan Airways has been on the banned list since 2008, and Commerce said the Iranian airline increased its services into Moscow in April after the U.S. and other countries imposed sanctions and export controls against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine (see 2202240069 and 2203180049). The latest renewal is for 180 days from May 13.
International sanctions against Belarus have blocked about $16 billion-$18 billion worth of its annual exports to Western nations since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, Reuters reported May 15. Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko told a state-owned media outlet this week that “almost all of Belarus' exports to the European Union and North America have been blocked” since the sanctions were imposed, according to the report. Belarus has been subject to many of the same sanctions and export controls applied to Russia because it has aided Moscow’s military in its war in Ukraine (see 2204080062 and 2204080008).
The departments of State and the Treasury, along with the FBI, issued a May 16 advisory regarding possible attempts by North Korean IT workers to obtain employment while posing as non-North Korean nationals, according to a notice from the Office of Foreign Assets Control.
The Bureau of Industry and Security recently sent a final rule for interagency review that would make corrections and clarifications to the agency’s Russia and Belarus export controls. The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs received the rule May 13.
The U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council agreed to several export control and investment screening initiatives during the TTC’s second meeting in Paris this week, including measures to better harmonize export licensing decisions and share information on screening practices (see 2205130071). The U.S. and the EU said these measures will help both sides continue their “unprecedented cooperation on export controls” against Russia and urged the working groups to “implement concrete actions” before the next ministerial meeting.
The Bureau of Industry and Security is considering several major changes to its administrative enforcement authorities, including publicizing its charging letters before cases are resolved and increasing penalty amounts for export violations. The agency may also limit its use of no admit/no deny settlements, which allow companies to avoid admitting explicit wrongdoing.
The US-EU Trade and Technology Council needs to limit its ambitions if it is to be successful, said Tyson Barker, head of the Technology and Global Affairs Program at the German Council on Foreign Relations, during a Washington International Trade Association webinar May 13.
The U.K. in a May 13 notice replaced the sanctions listing for one individual, removed another individual and amended the entries for 108 more under its Syria sanctions regime. The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation added Mohammad Al-Shaar to the sanctions list, replacing the entry for the same individual, formerly listed as Mohammad Ibrahim Al-Shaar. He's a Syrian military official involved in the violence in Homs.