The U.K. on July 1 amended three entries on its Russia sanctions list by updating the listings for two people and one entity. The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation updated the spellings for the entries of two individuals: Yegor Yurievich Karasev, executive at RNCO Banking Zone, and Anatoliy Moiseevich Cherner, deputy director for general-logistics and sales for Gazprom Neft. OFSI also updated the listing for the Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control removed sanctions from Gold Miles Ltd., a Hong Kong-based company designated in 2023. The firm was sanctioned for being owned by Ireland national John Desmond Hanafin, owner of Huriya Private FZE LLE, which OFAC sanctioned for helping to move Russian financial assets into the United Arab Emirates. OFAC didn't release more information about the delisting.
President Donald Trump this week ordered his administration to evaluate existing financial restrictions against Cuba to help “channel funds toward the Cuban people and away” from the Cuban government.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned Russia-headquartered Aeza Group, a hosting services provider that enables cybercriminal activity, along with several affiliated companies and people. OFAC said Aeza Group is a "bulletproof" hosting services provider that sell access to specialized servers and other infrastructure to help ransomware actors, personal information stealers, and drug vendors evade law enforcement.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on June 30 officially removed sanctions from 518 people and entities with ties to Syria after President Donald Trump signed an executive order authorizing the easing of both sanctions and certain export restrictions against the country (see 2506300055).
The Council of the European Union on June 30 renewed sanctions on Russia for an additional six months, pushing them to Jan. 31, 2026. The measures, first imposed in 2014 due to Russian attacks against Ukrainian sovereignty, currently consist of broad sectoral measures and efforts to combat sanctions circumvention. The measures also include a "ban on the import or transfer of seaborne crude oil and certain petroleum products from Russia to the EU."
The Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a final rule that adds to its regulations implementing President Donald Trump's February executive order authorizing sanctions against the International Criminal Court (see 2502070022). The rule, effective July 1, incorporates several previously issued general licenses into the regulations. The agency said it plans to issue a "more comprehensive set of regulations" in the future, "which may include additional interpretive guidance and definitions, GLs, and other regulatory provisions."
The U.K. on June 26 amended various entries on its Russia sanctions list, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation announced. The U.K. made changes to entries for 14 people that were originally sanctioned for undermining Ukrainian sovereignty through their work at the Social Design Agency, a Russian social media and marketing firm. OFSI also revised the entries for two entities: Rosneft Marine (UK) and the Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control last week renewed a Russia-related general license that authorizes certain civil nuclear energy-related transactions with Russian entities. General License 115B, which replaces 115A, authorizes those transactions with Gazprombank and other financial institutions through 12:01 a.m. EST Dec. 19. The license was scheduled to expire June 30. OFAC also updated several FAQs to reflect the renewal.
President Donald Trump said June 27 he had been working on a plan to remove Iran sanctions, but he decided against the plan after objecting to comments recently made by Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.