Williams Mullen hired Chris Skinner, previously at Squire Patton, as a partner in the International Trade practice, the law firm said in a news release. Skinner has “represented a range of U.S. and non-U.S. importers and exporters with respect to compliance with U.S. international trade laws and regulations” and is the “co-chair of the American Bar Association (ABA) International Law Section’s Export Controls and Economic Sanctions Committee.”
The United Kingdom’s Department for International Trade updated its guidance on trade sanctions related to Syria, according to a March 9 notice. The change updates the guidance’s section on crude oil and petroleum products.
The U.S. is continuing sanctions against Venezuela, the White House said in a March 5 notice. The White House said Venezuela continues to threaten U.S. national security, and the sanctions will continue beyond the expiration date of March 8.
The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control is removing the Terrorism Sanctions Regulations from the Code of Federal Regulations, OFAC said in a notice. The change was made due to the “termination of the national emergency on which the regulations were based.” The change will not affect any action taken or any action pending and not “finally concluded” as of 12:01 a.m. on Sept. 10, 2019, the notice said. The change is effective March 10.
Export controls over technology and software used for the 3D printing of firearms will not transition from the State Department to the Commerce Department after a Washington court granted a request to block the Trump administration from completing the transfer. The court, whose March 6 order temporarily blocked portions of a January final rule to transfer the controls, suggested the administration likely violated notice-and-comment standards and pointed to the “grave reality” the transfer might have on the proliferation of 3D printed guns. The decision stemmed from a January request (see 2001240047 and 2002070043) filed by 20 states and Washington, D.C., to urge the court to vacate the final transfer rules, which were scheduled to take effect March 9 (see 2001170030).
The United Kingdom’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation removed two entries from its sanctions list for misappropriation of funds and human rights violations related to Ukraine, according to a March 6 notice. The entries, Mykola Yanovych Azarov Edward Stavytskyi, are no longer subject to an asset freeze.
The United Kingdom’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation amended five entries under the country’s Libya sanctions, according to a March 6 notice. The entries are still subject to an asset freeze.
The United Kingdom’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation added three entries to its ISIL (Da’esh) and al-Qaida sanctions list, according to a March 5 notice. The sanctions targeted Jamaah Ansharut Daulah, the “Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant -- Libya,” and the “Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant -- Yemen.” The three entries were added to the United Nations ISIL (Da’esh), al‑Qaida sanctions list March 4.
The European Council renewed sanctions against 10 people for the misappropriation of Ukrainian state funds and corruption, the council said March 5. The sanctions, which include asset freezes, were renewed for one year until March 6, 2021.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a frequently asked question March 6 clarifying how humanitarian goods can be sent to Iran to assist with the coronavirus outbreak. OFAC said there are a “number of ways” humanitarian goods, including donations, can be sent to the country, adding that medical-related donations are “generally exempt” from U.S. sanctions if those donations are not being sent to the Iranian government or others blocked by the Iranian Transactions Sanctions Regulations. OFAC also said donations are not authorized for shipments to entries on the agency’s Specially Designated Nationals List. Nongovernmental organizations are authorized under General License E to export services to Iran “in support of certain not-for-profit activities designed to directly benefit the Iranian people,” OFAC said. Others interested in exporting humanitarian goods to Iran should review the ITSR and other OFAC guidance, the agency said.