While the U.S. government is going to “great lengths” to ease broad-based sanctions on Syria to allow normal business ties with the war-torn country to resume, sanctions on specific individuals and entities in Syria will probably remain in place for years to come to ensure bad actors can't access their frozen assets, according to a former Treasury Department official.
China this week sanctioned two European banks in retaliation for the EU earlier this year designating Chinese financial institutions for doing business with Russia (see 2507180017). The announcement blocks Chinese companies and people from participating in transactions or other "activities" with Lithuanian banks AB Urbo Bankas and AB Mano Banka, the ministry said Aug. 13, according to an unofficial translation.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a new general license this week to authorize certain transactions related to the Trump administration's planned meeting with Russian officials this week in Alaska. General License 125 authorizes transactions that are "ordinarily incident and necessary to the attendance at or support of meetings" between the two countries. Those transactions are authorized through 12:01 a.m. ET on Aug. 20.
Malaysia's July export license mandate for shipments of U.S.-origin advanced AI semiconductors could be a precursor to the U.S. carving out Malaysia from upcoming rules on advanced chip exports, a former Bureau of Industry and Security official said.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent this week echoed earlier comments from the White House that said the administration is open to expanding its Nvidia and AMD revenue-sharing export arrangements to other companies or industries (see 2508120049). He said the U.S. is OK negotiating export controls over Nvidia’s H20s chips because they present no national security issues.
The European Commission this month updated its sanctions guidance on banned Russian diamonds, including sections related to tracing diamond imports, required certifications and verifications, resources for importers and more.
The U.K. on Aug. 12 amended or corrected a total of four entries under its sanctions regimes covering cyberattacks, Iraq and global irregular migration and trafficking in persons.
An active-duty service member of the U.S. Army was charged with trying to send national defense information to a foreign adversary and trying to export controlled technical data, DOJ announced Aug. 6. Taylor Lee, stationed at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, allegedly tried to send information on the M1A2 Abrams tank, an "armored fighting vehicle used by the U.S. military" and combat operations to the Russian military.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee ranking member Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., said Aug. 7 that she plans to “redouble” her efforts to enact a bill to sanction officials who undermine democracy in the Republic of Georgia.
The Trump administration has failed to use sanctions and export controls to help end Russia’s war against Ukraine, the Democratic staffs of the Senate Banking and Foreign Relations committees said in a report released this week.