Sens. Tim Kaine, D-Va., and Bill Cassidy, R-La., introduced a bill Dec. 17 to authorize the president to sanction foreign persons and vessels involved in illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Ben Cardin, D-Md., and Sens. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., and Jack Reed, D-R.I., introduced a bill Dec. 17 to sanction foreign persons that undermine Lebanon’s democratic institutions and processes. The bill also would codify sanctions imposed under executive order 13441 against those who undermine Lebanon’s sovereignty and democratic institutions. The bill, which has a wide range of other Lebanon provisions, is meant to strengthen the Middle Eastern country as it seeks to rebound from the recent war on its territory between Hezbollah and Israel. It was referred to Cardin’s committee.

A bipartisan group of six senators urged the Biden administration Dec. 17 to sanction foreign entities involved in illegally smuggling gold from Sudan to the United Arab Emirates and other countries.

The Biden administration said this week it has received assurances that the United Arab Emirates has ended weapons transfers to Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia group, meeting a key demand of U.S. lawmakers who had threatened to oppose an arms sale to the UAE over its RSF support.

Lawmakers unveiled a new continuing resolution late Dec. 19 that doesn't include the outbound investment restrictions and export control and sanctions provisions that an earlier version contained (see 2412180034).

The House Select Committee on China’s fentanyl policy working group unveiled three bipartisan bills Dec. 17 to counter China’s role as the world’s leading supplier of precursor chemicals for fentanyl.

Several lawmakers have urged the Biden administration to ease sanctions on Syria in light of the overthrow of the Assad regime by rebel forces.

The Biden administration should impose sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act on Republic of Georgia officials responsible for violence against those peacefully protesting the country’s democratic backsliding, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Ben Cardin, D-Md., said Dec. 16. “Now is the moment for the United States and our allies to stand strong with the people of Georgia in their pursuit of democracy and freedom,” Cardin said. Sens. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, and Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., made similar comments two weeks earlier (see 2412020009).

Rep. Bill Keating, D-Mass., introduced a bill Dec. 11 that would codify Russia sanctions imposed under nine executive orders: 13849, 13883, 14024, 14039, 14065, 14066, 14068, 14701 and 14114. It is identical to a bill that Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Ben Cardin, D-Md., introduced in September.

The leaders of the House Select Committee on China urged TikTok Dec. 13 to comply with an eight-month-old law that will ban the popular social media application in the U.S. unless it is divested by Chinese parent company ByteDance by Jan. 19.