The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned Horacio Manuel Cartes Jara and Hugo Adalberto Velazquez Moreno, the former president and current vice president of Paraguay, respectively, for significant corruption. The agency also sanctioned Tabacos USA Inc., Bebidas USA Inc., Dominicana Acquisition S.A. and Frigorifico Chajha S.A.E. for being owned by Cartes.
The U.S. this week expanded sanctions against Wagner Group and designated people, entities and aircraft linked to the Russian private military company. The designations will "degrade the Russian Federation’s capacity to wage war against Ukraine," the Office of Foreign Assets Control said in a Jan. 26 news release, and target infrastructure that "supports battlefield operations in Ukraine," including weapons producers and administrators of Russian-occupied areas.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week designated three people for their financial support of Hezbollah, including Hassan Moukalled and his business CTEX Exchange. OFAC sanctioned Moukalled, a Lebanese money exchanger, and CTEX for working closely with Hezbollah financiers to help the group "establish a presence" in Lebanon's financial system. Moukalled serves as a financial adviser to Hezbollah and does business on behalf of the group, representing it in financial negotiations, the agency said. In addition, OFAC designated Moukalled's two sons, Rayyan and Rani, who OFAC said support their father and his business with Hezbollah.
Jason Prince, former chief counsel at the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control, has moved to Crowell & Moring as a partner, the firm announced. He will advise clients on sanctions and export controls imposed on Russia and other nations and parties. During his time at OFAC, Prince "oversaw the legal design of new sanctions measures and led the legal review of all major OFAC enforcement, compliance, licensing, litigation, and regulatory actions," the firm said.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Cooperative Foundation along with five of its board members, Iran's deputy minister of intelligence and security, and four senior IRGC commanders.
Sharath Patil, former associate attorney at Diaz Trade Law, has joined the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control as a sanctions enforcement officer, according to his LinkedIn page. Before working at Diaz Trade Law, Patil was research director for international trade at the nonprofit advocacy group Public Citizen.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control removed one individual, Hanna Khalifeh, across three separate entries from its Specially Designated Nationals List, according to a Jan. 19 announcement. Khalifeh was listed on the SDN List for counterterrorism reasons. OFAC didn't immediately provide more information.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control Jan. 17 again extended a general license that continues to delay an exemption that would authorize certain transactions related to Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A. General License 5J, which replaced GL 5I, now authorizes certain transactions with PdVSA involving an 8.5% bond on or after April 20. The agency also updated a frequently asked question to reflect the change. The previous license was set to allow those transactions to occur on or after Jan. 20.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week updated three Russia-related general licenses and four frequently asked questions.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control is adjusting its civil monetary penalties for inflation, the agency said in a notice. 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 $165,474 to $178,290” and adjusted the record-keeping CMPs in OFAC’s Economic Sanctions Enforcement Guidelines. The changes take effect Jan. 13.