The EU added one group and two individuals to its ISIL/Da'esh and al-Qaida sanctions regime, the European Council announced May 30. The restrictions apply to Hurras al-Din, the Syria-based affiliate of al-Qaida, its leader Faruq al-Suri and its religious leader Sami al-Aridi.
The Drug Enforcement Administration is placing the newly approved drug ganaxolone in Schedule V of the Controlled Substances Act, it said in an interim final rule. Effective June 1, ganaxolone, which was granted approval by the FDA in March, is subject to new registration, labeling, record-keeping, and import and export requirements. DEA is accepting comments on the rule until July 1.
Canada this week announced another set of sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, including designations targeting 22 more people and four more entities. The new sanctions, announced May 31, apply to “key” Russian financial institutions, including banks, and their senior officials. Canada said it has so far imposed sanctions against more than 1,500 people and entities since Russia’s invasion of Crimea in 2014, including more than 1,050 designations since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in February.
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The EU agreed to a partial ban on Russian oil ahead of a sixth sanctions package on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. The ban applies to the purchase of crude oil and petroleum products from Russia delivered to EU member states by sea. A temporary exclusion applies to crude shipped via pipeline. European Council President Charles Michel confirmed the agreement on a partial ban on Russian oil in a May 30 tweet following a summit in Brussels. "This immediately covers more than 2/3 of oil imports from Russia, cutting a huge source of financing for its war machine," the tweet said.
The Bureau of Industry and Security soon will introduce a congressional notification requirement for certain firearm exports, the agency said in a final rule. The change, effective July 18, will add a new section to the Export Administration Regulations that will require congressional reporting for certain semiautomatic firearms shipments valued at $4 million or more and destined to certain countries. The requirement will apply to certain guns whose export control authority was transferred from the State Department to the Commerce Department in 2020 (see 2001170030).
The U.K. issued a license allowing the sale of Chelsea Football Club, Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries confirmed in a tweet. The club was subject to an asset freeze after owner and Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the U.K. in March related to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The club was sold to a consortium led by American businessman Todd Boehly. Dorries also said May 26 the U.K. government is confident the integrity of the sanctions regime will be maintained throughout the sale and proceeds will be transferred to a frozen U.K. bank account belonging to Fordstam -- a holding company owned by Abramovich. The U.K. agreed to a Deed of Undertaking that would have Abramovich commit the proceeds to a charity for the purposes of helping victims of the war in Ukraine. The sale also needed the approval of the Portuguese government because Abramovich is a Portuguese passport holder. The Portuguese government gave their consent on May 26, per the Associated Press.
Jonathan Yet Wing Soong, former employee at Universities Space Research Association, was charged with violating export control laws by shipping sensitive aeronautics software to a university in Beijing, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California announced. Soong, of San Jose, is charged with violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and and one count of smuggling, which, respectively, carry maximum penalties of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine, and 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Two companies said they didn’t face any penalties from the Office of Foreign Assets Control after disclosing potential sanctions violations, according to their most recent SEC filings. Baker Hughes, an American oil services company, said it received a “cautionary letter” from OFAC after voluntarily disclosing potential sanctions violations last year. The company said it told OFAC in September that some of its non-U.S. affiliates may have received payments subject to certain sanctions and debt restrictions and that had U.S. touch points. Baker Hughes received a warning letter from OFAC in February, the company said. The company said it’s still being investigated by the SEC (see 2103040065). Semrush Holdings, a Boston software company that disclosed potential sanctions violations last year (see 2103190020), said it won’t face any penalties from OFAC. The agency “decided not to pursue any enforcement action against us and the matter has been closed,” Semrush said.
Switzerland dropped Ahmad Zargar, Mohammad Hejazi and Seyyed Hasan Firuzabadi from its Iran sanctions regime, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs said in a May 24 amendment. The three individuals were also delisted by the EU and the U.K.