The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned an Iranian business executive and five entities based in Iran, mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan for procuring technology on behalf of Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Industrial Company, an Iranian state-owned subsidiary of the country's Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics. OFAC said the subsidiary makes military aircraft, including unmanned drones for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control has renewed a sanctions waiver for Serbia’s majority-Russian-owned oil company NIS, an entity designated in January for its ties to Russian oil firm Gazprom Neft. At the request of Serbia's Mining and Energy agency, the U.S. now has extended a waiver for the designation five times since January, Serbian Energy Minister Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic said July 27, according to an unofficial translation. NIS operates the country's only oil refinery.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned Alexandre de Moraes, a Brazilian Supreme Federal Court judge that it said has ordered "arbitrary pre-trial detentions" and suppressed freedom of expression.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned more than 115 people, entities and vessels for their ties to Iran, including for their part in a “vast shipping empire” controlled by Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, the son of a top political adviser to the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ali Shamkhani. The designations -- which target a network generating tens of billions of dollars for Iran by moving oil and petroleum products from Iran and Russia to buyers around the world -- represent the U.S.'s largest Iran-related sanctions action since 2018, OFAC said.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control's $11.8 million sanctions fine levied on Interactive Brokers earlier this month is another sign that the agency intends to focus enforcement on "financial gatekeepers," including investment firms, accountants and wealth advisers (see 2506230023), Baker Botts said in a client alert.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control last week labeled Venezuela-based Cartel de los Soles a Specially Designated Global Terrorist. OFAC said the cartel is a criminal group headed by Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, adding it "provides material support" to groups the U.S. has labeled foreign terrorist organizations, including Tren de Aragua and the Sinaloa Cartel.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control deleted a range of entries from its Specially Designated Nationals List last week that were originally sanctioned for their ties to Myanmar or North Korea. The delistings include KT Services & Logistics Company Limited and its CEO, Jonathan Myo Kyaw Thaung, a company OFAC sanctioned in 2022 for being controlled by the Myanmar military; Funsaga Pte Ltd., which also was sanctioned in 2022 for doing business with a North Korean-run animation studio; and Suntac Technologies, which was sanctioned in 2023 for ties to the Myanmar military. OFAC didn't release more information about why it removed those entries.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week designated North Korea-based Korea Sobaeksu Trading Company and three people working closely with the company for helping North Korea evade sanctions. OFAC said Kim Se Un, Jo Kyong Hun and Myong Chol Min are either employed by the company or work with it to help generate revenue for the North Korean government, including by deploying information technology workers overseas to earn money.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control is now accepting licensing questions through a new online platform and is planning to retire its current callback-only telephone system on Aug. 29, the agency said this week. Users that submit questions through the online platform will receive answers about specific OFAC licenses and interpretive guidance via email or by phone. Before submitting questions, OFAC said, users are encouraged to review existing sanctions FAQs, watch OFAC’s video guidance on applying for a license, review the agency’s best practices for license applications, and check their license application status.
The House approved by voice vote late July 21 a bill aimed at improving the investigative capabilities of the Office of Foreign Assets Control.