The Senate on Feb. 9 confirmed Neil MacBride, President Joe Biden’s nominee to be general counsel for the Treasury Department. MacBride, a former federal prosecutor who will advise Treasury on sanctions work, said during his nomination hearing last year that he will “ensure that the department’s regulatory actions comply with the laws Congress enacts.” He also said he knows “firsthand the importance” of the Office of Foreign Assets Control, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and other Treasury agencies.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control is removing sanctions regulations on Burundi, it said in a notice. It follows President Joe Biden's Nov. 18 executive order (see 2111180014) declaring an end to the state of national emergency in Burundi, citing the "significantly altered" situation over the past year, "including the transfer of power following elections in 2020, significantly decreased violence, and ... reforms across multiple sectors."
The Office of Foreign Assets Control is adjusting its civil monetary penalties for inflation, the agency said in a notice released Feb. 8. The new amounts include higher maximum penalties for violations of the Trading With the Enemy Act, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act, the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act and the Clean Diamond Trade Act. The agency also updated two references to “one-half the IEEPA maximum CMP from $155,781 to $165,474” and adjusted the recordkeeping CMP amounts in OFAC’s Economic Sanctions Enforcement Guidelines. The changes take effect Feb. 9.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control is adding Ethiopia sanctions regulations to implement the Sept. 17 executive order "Imposing Sanctions on Certain Persons With Respect to the Humanitarian and Human Rights Crisis in Ethiopia" (see 2109170036).
The Biden administration is considering a request from Chevron to reinstate a license that would allow it to trade in sanctioned Venezuelan oil cargo and recoup unpaid debt, Reuters reported Feb. 7. Under the Trump administration, the U.S. oil company and others were authorized to “take and export Venezuelan oil to recoup dividends and debt from joint ventures” with Petróleos de Venezuela, the country’s state-run energy company, the report said. The “arrangement” was suspended in 2020 under Trump’s maximum pressure campaign on sanctions.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Feb. 3 sanctioned World Human Care, a non-governmental organization created by Indonesia-based terrorist group Majelis Mujahidin Indonesia. OFAC said the group provides financial support for MMI “extremists” in Syria “under the guise of humanitarian aid.”
The Office of Foreign Assets Control issued seven new frequently asked questions to provide more guidance on humanitarian shipments to Afghanistan. The new FAQs, issued Feb. 3, clarify aspects of general licenses 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19 for authorized assistance by nongovernmental organizations and international organizations within Afghanistan that may involve transactions with the Taliban. These forms of assistance include cash shipments, bank transactions, support for municipal water systems that "directly benefit the Afghan people," and salary support for teachers and healthcare workers "even to the extent doing so would involve transacting with the Taliban and/or Haqqani Network."
The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned seven people and two entities connected to Myanmar's military, the agency said Jan. 31. The sanctions target KT Services & Logistics Co., which operates the TMT Port in Yangon and leases it from the U.S.-sanctioned Myanmar Economic Holdings, and the Directorate of Procurement of the Commander-In-Chief of Defense Services, which buys arms and equipment for the country’s military. OFAC also designated government officials Thida Oo, Tun Tun Oo and Tin Oo, along with Jonathan Myo Kyaw Thaung, Tay Za, Htoo Htet Tay Za and Pye Phyo Tay Za, all of whom have ties to business dealings with the government.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Jan. 31 removed a vessel from its Specially Designated Nationals List. The agency deleted the Oman Pride crude oil tanker, a Liberia-flagged vessel sanctioned last year for being operated by Bravery Maritime, a company owned by Iranian oil shipper Mahmood Rashid Amur Al Habsi (see 2110290024 and 2108130041). OFAC didn’t immediately provide more information.
Lawmakers submitted a host of amendments to the House’s recently released China competition bill, including measures that would introduce new export controls and sanctions authorities and requirements. One submission, a 115-page amendment from Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, would create more congressional oversight of the Commerce Department’s emerging and foundational technology control effort and calls for expanded export restrictions against Chinese military companies.