The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week issued a determination that will prohibit certain shipping services related to Russian oil, and said it will soon announce a price cap on Russian fuel alongside its G-7 partners. The agency also issued a guidance outlining how it plans to implement the price cap -- including compliance requirements for U.S. service providers -- and three related general licenses.
Ben Perkins
Ben Perkins, Assistant Editor, is a reporter with International Trade Today and its sister publications, Trade Law Daily and Export Compliance Daily, where he covers sanctions, court rulings, and other international trade issues. He previously worked as a trade analyst for a Washington D.C. advisory firm. Ben holds a B.A. in English from the University of New Hampshire and an M.A. in International Relations from American University. Ben joined the staff of Warren Communications News in 2022.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Nov. 21 extended a Russia-related general license that authorizes the payment of certain taxes and import fees to the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, the National Wealth Fund of the Russian Federation or the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation despite the sanctions imposed on those entities. General License 13C, which replaces GL 13B (see 2209080047), extends the authorization through 12:01 a.m. EST on March 7, 2023. GL13B was scheduled to expire Dec. 7.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control in a Nov. 18 notice issued Russia-related General License 54 authorizing all transactions necessary for the purchase or receipt of any debt or equity securities of VEON Ltd, a multinational telecommunication services company. The license authorizes transactions that would otherwise be prohibited by executive order 14071, Prohibiting New Investment in and Certain Services to the Russian Federation, provided that the debt or equity securities were issued prior to June 6. The license does not authorize transactions otherwise prohibited by the Russian Harmful Foreign Activities Sanctions Regulations, including transactions involving any blocked person, unless separately authorized.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control designated La Nueva Familia Michoacana and its co-leaders, Johnny Hurtado Olascoaga and Jose Alfredo Hurtado Olascoaga, for smuggling drugs "into and throughout" the U.S., including the proliferation of "rainbow fentanyl," according to a Nov. 17 news release.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned 13 companies for facilitating the sale of Iranian petrochemicals and petroleum products. The companies facilitated sales to East Asian buyers on behalf of Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industry Commercial, Triliance Petrochemical, and the National Iranian Oil Co., which are all previously sanctioned entities, OFAC said in a Nov. 17 news release. The action is the fifth round of designations targeting Iran’s petroleum and petrochemical trade since June, OFAC said.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week issued Counter Terrorism General License 21, which authorizes certain transactions related to safety and environmental measures through Dec. 15 for certain vessels blocked by the Global Terrorism Sanctions Regulations. The license allows docking, repair, crew safety and "environmental mitigation or protection" activities related to vessels owned by Victor Artemov and other shipping companies: Azul Vista Shipping Corp., Blue Berri Shipping Inc., Harbour Ship Management Limited, Pontus Navigation Corp., Technology Bright International Ltd., Triton Navigation Corp., and Vista Clara Shipping Corp.
The U.S. this week sanctioned firms and people involved in making drones and transferring them from Iran to Russia, including an Iranian producer and two United Arab Emirates entities. The designations come less than a month after the U.S. said it was considering additional sanctions on both Russia and Iran following Iranian sales and operation of drones in Ukraine (see 2210210046).
The Office of Foreign Assets Control and the State Department issued sanctions against 14 individuals, 28 entities and eight aircraft that are part of a transnational network procuring technology supporting the Russian military-industrial complex and a network of financial facilitators, OFAC said in a Nov. 14 news release.
In coordination with the Netherlands and the U.K., the Office of Foreign Assets Control on Nov. 9 sanctioned three individuals and nine entities for their connection to internet-based suppliers of fentanyl and other synthetic drugs.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control designated members of an international oil smuggling network that facilitated oil trades and generated revenue for Hezbollah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF), according to a Nov. 3 OFAC notice.