Two Republican lawmakers urged the Biden administration to increase sanctions against Nord Stream 2, the Russian gas pipeline, after reports that Russia is preparing to further invade Ukraine. Rep. Michael McCaul of Texas and Jim Risch of Idaho, the two top Republicans on the House and Senate’s respective foreign affairs committees, applauded the administration’s increased Russian sanctions last week (see 2104150019) but said more should be done. “While yesterday’s sanctions on Russia are a positive half-step, they did not include the one U.S. action that would have an immediate impact -- sanctioning and stopping the Nord Stream 2 pipeline,” the lawmakers said April 16. They said the pipeline is a “key source of Russian malign influence” and called on the administration to “fully” implement sanctions against the project “without delay.” Several other lawmakers from both parties have asked the administration to increase sanctions against the pipeline (see 2102170013, 2103240014 and 2008110016). The White House didn’t comment.
The United Nations Security Council removed six Iraq-related entries from its sanctions list, an April 15 news release said. The entries are: the General Establishment for Bakeries and Ovens, the General Establishment for Flour Mills, the Iraqi State Export Organization, the Iraqi State Import Organization, the State Trading Enterprise for Equipment and Hand Tools and the State Trading Enterprise for Machinery.
The U.K.'s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation removed six entities from its Iraq sanctions regime in an April 16 financial sanctions notice. The General Establishment for Bakeries and Ovens, General Establishment for Flour Mills, Iraqi State Import Export Organization, Iraqi State Import Organization, State Trading Enterprise for Equipment and Hand Tools and State Trading Enterprise for Machinery are no longer subject to an asset freeze. The entities were originally listed under the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018.
The European Council added one individual to its sanctions regime on the ISIL/Da'esh and Al-Qaida, it said in an April 15 news release. Mesut Sekerci will now be subject to a travel ban and asset freeze for his role in ISIL. Sekerci's listing brings to six the total number of listed individuals under the EU's ISIL sanctions regime.
Chinese imports are helping grow sanctioned Iranian oil production to its highest levels in nearly two years, the Wall Street Journal reported April 15. The Journal, citing the International Energy Agency, said China has boosted its Iranian oil purchases to 600,000 barrels a day, which is five times higher than in the first nine months of 2020. The report said Chinese buyers appear to have increased their purchases after the U.S. election of President Joe Biden, who vowed a return to the Iranian nuclear deal, an agreement that had suspended certain sanctions against Iran. A U.S. lawmaker last week asked the State Department to provide information on whether China is violating U.S. sanctions on Iran (see 2104140053).
The State Department officially updated its guidance for the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act to list six previously sanctioned Russian entities with ties to Russia’s defense and intelligence sectors, a notice released April 16 said. The entities were identified as part of a March announcement that issued export controls and sanctions against Russia in response to the poisoning and imprisonment of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny (see 2103020067).
The U.S. will likely continue to update the regulations for the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., which has created some complications for industry, trade lawyers told the American Bar Association April 15. The recently revised regulations have also severely reduced incoming Chinese investments, which could have long-term implications, one lawyer said.
The Directorate of Defense Trade Controls’ Defense Export Control and Compliance System will undergo scheduled system maintenance April 19, DDTC said April 15. The system’s registration and licensing applications will be unavailable to industry from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. EDT. DDTC said users should make sure their work in progress is saved before the downtime.
Two Senate Republicans this week suggested they will support the Foreign Relations Committee’s recently introduced China legislation (see 2104080066) that would authorize more export controls and investment restrictions to counter Chinese trade and technology practices.
Two Republican lawmakers urged the Commerce Department to place more restrictions on exports of electronic design automation tools (see 2104060045). In an April 13 letter, Rep. Mike McCaul of Texas and Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas said they are concerned that EDA tools are being used by Chinese companies -- including Phytium Technologies, which was added to the Entity List this month (see 2104080011) -- to develop advanced weapons and support the Chinese military.