ATF to Set New Restrictions on Imports of Firearms, Ammunition From Russia
The State Department and the Office of Foreign Assets Control recently announced a series of sanctions against Russia, including import restrictions on firearms and the designation of entities and individuals connected the poisoning of Russian opposition figure Aleksey Navalny. Coming on the one-year anniversary of Navalny’s poisoning with Novichok nerve agent, the new sanctions are being carried out “in concert” with the United Kingdom, State said.
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The sanctions include new restrictions on the permanent importation of firearms or ammunition manufactured or located in Russia. New and pending permit applications for such activities will be subject to a policy of denial. The Commerce Department will also impose additional export controls on nuclear and missile-related goods and technology, according to a State Department fact sheet.
Imposed under the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control and Warfare Elimination Act, these new restrictions will take effect upon publication of a Federal Register notice expected on Sept. 7, and will remain in effect for a minimum of a year. After that period, they may only be lifted if the executive branch “determines and certifies to Congress that Russia has met several conditions described in the CBW Act,” including international inspections and restitution to Navalny, the fact sheet said.
The import restrictions on firearms and ammunition “that are the growth, product, or manufacture” of Russia will be implemented by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, OFAC said in a frequently asked question issued alongside the announcement. “OFAC has concurred with the Deputy Secretary of State’s determination pursuant to the CBW Act regarding the imposition of import restrictions, and with ATF’s implementation of the restrictions according to State Department guidance,” it said.