The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned a senior Cuban official and a government agency for their involvement in the repression of pro-democratic protests on the island this month, OFAC said July 22. The designations target Alvaro Lopez Miera, the Cuban defense minister, and the Brigada Especial Nacional del Ministerio del Interior (also known as the Boinas Negras or the Black Berets). “This is just the beginning,” President Joe Biden said in a July 22 statement. “The United States will continue to sanction individuals responsible for oppression of the Cuban people.”
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on July 20 extended a general license related to Petroleos de Venezuela and updated a frequently asked question to reflect the change. General License No. 5G, which replaced No. 5F (see 2012230066), now authorizes certain transactions with PdVSA involving an 8.5% bond on or after Oct. 21, 2021.
The Commerce and Treasury departments fined a Dubai energy equipment supplier and its U.S. affiliate more than $430,000 for illegally exporting goods to Iran, the agencies said July 19. The U.S. fined Dubai-based Alfa Laval Middle East (AL Middle East) $415,695 for exporting Gamajet brand storage tank cleaning units from the U.S. to Iran and fined Virginia-based Alfa Laval (AL U.S.) $16,875 because its subsidiary referred an Iranian “business opportunity” to AL Middle East, according to enforcement orders issued this week.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control published previously expired Ukraine-related general licenses to provide their full texts. Released July 16, the notices include Ukraine-Related Web General License 12, 14 and their “subsequent iterations.”
The U.S. released an advisory to highlight the sanctions and export controls risks for companies doing business in Hong Kong and announced a new set of Hong Kong designations July 16. The advisory, issued by the State, Treasury, Commerce and Homeland Security departments, describes “considerations” for businesses operating in “this new legal landscape,” which includes several sanctions regimes targeting Beijing and Hong Kong.
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The Treasury Department issued a new general license authorizing certain exports and reexports of oil to the Venezuelan government and Petroleos de Venezuela, the country’s state-run energy company. General License No. 40, issued July 12, authorizes transactions related to indirect or direct exports and reexports of liquefied natural gas to PdVSA and any entity it owns by 50% or more. The transactions are authorized through 12:01 a.m. July 8, 2022.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control officially released its Russian Harmful Foreign Activities Sanctions Directive July 7, outlining restrictions against the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, the National Wealth Fund of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation. The directive, issued by OFAC in April (see 2104150019), was part of a broad sanctions package to penalize Russian human rights violations, corruption and election interference activities.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control will officially remove the International Criminal Court-Related Sanctions Regulations from the Code of Federal Regulations, OFAC said in a notice. The sanctions were originally imposed under the Trump administration but sparked opposition from human rights advocates. President Joe Biden revoked them in April (see 2104020046). The removal takes effect July 6.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on July 2 sanctioned 22 people connected to Myanmar’s military regime. The designations include seven “key members” of the military and 15 of their spouses and adult children. “Today’s action demonstrates that the United States will continue to impose increasing costs on Burma’s military and promote accountability for those responsible for the military coup and ongoing violence, including by targeting sources of revenue for the military and its leaders,” OFAC Director Andrea Gacki said in a statement.