US Sanctions Former Georgian Prime Minister, Issues General License
The U.S. on Dec. 27 sanctioned Bidzina Ivanishvili, a Georgian oligarch and former Georgian prime minister. The State Department said Ivanishvili was sanctioned for "undermining the democratic and Euro-Atlantic future of Georgia for the benefit of" Russia, and he has also contributed to human rights abuses in the country.
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The Office of Foreign Assets Control issued new General License 116, which authorizes certain transactions with entities owned by Ivanishvili as long as those entities aren’t also on OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals List. A new FAQ says U.S. people are still blocked “from transacting with Ivanishvili himself unless exempt or otherwise authorized by OFAC” and that the license doesn’t authorize transactions “related to the Singapore Court of Appeal Case or related proceedings.” The agency didn’t immediately release more information on Ivanishvili’s designation.
The designation came days after House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, urged the Biden administration to impose “expanded, meaningful sanctions" on senior Georgian officials, including Ivanishvili, the "government’s corrupt puppet-master." McCaul said such actions are “long overdue" and are needed "to hold these actors accountable" for oppressing the Georgian people.