The U.S. and Switzerland agreed this month to better share sanctions enforcement information, according to a memorandum of understanding released last week. The memorandum, signed by the Office of Foreign Assets Control and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, said they "express their intention to share information related to the monitoring, enforcement, and promotion of compliance with sanctions measures in force on both sides."
The U.K.’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation emailed a reminder to industry this week about new sanctions reporting requirements for certain art dealers, real estate agents and insolvency practitioners. As of May 14, those people “are legally required to comply with relevant firms reporting obligations in the UK,” OFSI said, including reports about suspected sanctions violations.
The U.S. this week sanctioned two Hezbollah officials and two people who help the group receive money from overseas donors, which contribute a “significant portion of the terrorist group’s overall budget,” the Treasury Department said.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a new general license that eliminates the expiration date for certain authorized transactions with the Caspian Pipeline Consortium, an international crude oil transportation project involving Russia, and the Tengizchevroil project, another oil venture involving Chevron and Kazakhstan. New General License 124 authorizes certain transactions with those projects that would normally be prohibited under a January determination that blocks the provision of U.S. petroleum services to parties in Russia (see 2501100027).
President Donald Trump this week renewed a national emergency authorizing certain sanctions related to Iraq. The White House said "obstacles to the orderly reconstruction" of peace, security and economic institutions in Iraq continue to threaten U.S. national security. The sanctions were renewed for another year from May 22.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned six people and 12 entities in Iran and China for helping Iran source the manufacturing of critical materials needed for the country's ballistic missile program, including carbon fiber.
The Council of the European Union on May 12 extended the sanctions against cyber-attacks threatening the EU for another year, until May 18, 2026. The council also extended the legal framework for the restrictions for three years, pushing them until May 18, 2028. The framework lets the EU impose targeted sanctions on individuals or entities involved in "cyber-attacks which cause a significant impact, and constitute an external threat to the EU or its member states," the council said. The measures currently apply to 17 people and four entities.
The State Department this week added Cuba back to the list of countries that aren’t cooperating fully with U.S. counterterrorism efforts, about one year after the Biden administration delisted the island nation (see 2405170040).
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned about two dozen entities and vessels with ties to Iran's oil trade, including front companies that it said are hiding the origin of Iranian oil, China-based buyers, and ships moving Iranian oil. The designations target companies and ships in Hong Kong, Singapore and Iran, and vessels carrying the flags of Cameroon and Panama and their owners based in Hong Kong and the Seychelles.
The U.K. extended its sanctions license permitting the winding down of transactions with Amsterdam Trade Bank N.V., which is a majority-owned subsidiary of sanctioned Russian bank Alfa-Bank. The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation extended the license until May 12, 2030. OFSI also amended the license to say that any party, including the "Bankruptcy Trustees and any other insolvency practitioner," can make, receive or process any payments or "exercise all rights" in connection with any insolvency proceeding related to ATB or "the fulfilment of the Bankruptcy Trustees' statutory functions."