The Office of Foreign Assets Control is modifying its North Korea sanctions regulations to amend a general license for humanitarian activities carried out by non-governmental organizations in North Korea. The agency also is adding three new general licenses for Commerce Department-authorized transactions, agricultural and medical goods, and some journalistic activities, it said.
The U.S. this week sanctioned four entities and three people for procuring and facilitating the illegal export of “goods and technology from over two dozen U.S. companies” to Iranian end-users, including the Central Bank of Iran.
A New York freight forwarder agreed to complete export compliance training, but won’t face a fine, after admitting to the Bureau of Industry and Security that it illegally shipped enterprise servers and switches to Iran on behalf of an Iran-based exporter.
Upcoming know-your-customer rules for U.S. cloud service providers come with a new set of compliance risks, with providers potentially facing lability not just from the Commerce Department but also from U.S. sanctions authorities, Sidley Austin said in a client alert this month.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned four entities and identified one vessel for violating the price cap on Russian oil. OFAC said they were involved in a “price cap violation scheme” in late 2023 that included making calls at Russian ports.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned an Ecuadorian gang and its leader for their ties to drug trafficking and violence.
The U.K. government faced pressure from Parliament this week about whether it failed to sanction companies owned by Iran’s state-backed petrochemicals firm, allowing it to evade western restrictions by maintaining accounts with at least two London banks. Members of Parliament called for an investigation and said the government may need more sanctions enforcement resources.
- The U.S. issued a new set of frequently asked questions last week to provide guidance on its Jan. 30 decision to reimpose certain sanctions against Venezuela after it found the Nicolas Maduro-led regime has failed to take steps to hold free and fair elections (see 2401300014). The new FAQs outline how and when those sanctions relief measures will be revoked and what transactions will be prohibited. The document, issued by the Office of Foreign Assets Control, said the U.S. may decide to keep the sanctions relief in place “only if the representatives of Maduro follow through with their commitments and take continued concrete steps toward a democratic election by the end of 2024.”
The Office of Foreign Assets Control last week sanctioned six Iranian officials with ties to cyberattacks against the U.S. and other countries. The officials work for Iran’s Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Cyber-Electronic Command (IRGC-CEC), a government organization that carries out the attacks.
The U.S. last week sanctioned a network of companies in Hong Kong and Iran for supplying materials and sensitive technology for Iran’s ballistic missile and drone programs. OFAC said the companies act as “covert procurement entities” for Iran and have helped the country develop its Shahed-series unmanned aerial vehicles that Iran sends to Russia for its war against Ukraine.