The EU Court of Justice on Sept. 10 said the restriction on providing brokering services in relation to military equipment to parties in or for use in Russia applies even when the goods were never imported into an EU member state, according to an unofficial translation. The court said if this weren't the case, then the "prohibition could easily be circumvented" by shipping equipment on a route that didn't pass through EU territory.
Russia export controls and sanctions
The use of export controls and sanctions on Russia has surged since the country's invasion of Crimea in 2014, and especially its invasion of Ukraine in in February 2022. Similar export controls and sanctions have been imposed by U.S. allies, including the EU, U.K. and Japan. The following is a listing of recent articles in Export Compliance Daily on export controls and sanctions imposed on Russia:
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week issued new guidance about the exclusions available under Russia-related information technology and software services restrictions that took effect Sept. 12.
The EU General Court on Sept. 11 rejected the Russian National Settlement Depository's challenge to its listing on the Russian sanctions list. The court said that the European Council didn't fail to show that the depository, which provides financial services and securities record-keeping and custody services, plays an "essential role in the functioning of Russia's financial system."
The EU General Court earlier this month dismissed the delisting applications of Igor Kesaev, largest shareholder of Russian weapons maker Degtyarev Factory, and Kirill Shamalov, deputy chairman of the management board of petrochemical company Sibur Holding, in a pair of decisions, according to an unofficial translation.
The Treasury Department this week sanctioned 10 people and six entities in Iran and Russia involved in trading Iranian weapons and drones, along with four vessels delivering those shipments. The State Department also designated various shipping companies and vessels, including Iran Air, which the agency said is being used to move Western-origin goods to Russia.
U.S. computing chip manufacturers told a congressional panel this week that they’re increasing their scrutiny of products that have ended up in Russian weapons used in Ukraine.
Gal Haimovich, an Israeli national, pleaded guilty Sept. 9 to conspiracy to commit export control and smuggling violations for his part in a scheme to ship aircraft parts and avionics equipment from the U.S. to Russia, DOJ announced. Haimovich admitted to "deceiving U.S. companies about the true destination of the goods at issue" and attempting to hide the scheme by submitting false information in export documents submitted to the U.S. government.
The U.S. on Sept. 5 unsealed an indictment against Sam Bhambhani, a North Attleboro, Massachusetts, resident and salesman for an unnamed laser source supplier, for allegedly conspiring to violate U.S. export controls and smuggling goods from the U.S. by sending laser welding machines to Russia. Also named in the indictment was Maxim Teslenko, a Russian citizen, who "acted as a reseller of laser equipment to the Russian government."
The U.K. on Sept. 10 added three entries to its Russian sanctions regime and seven people and entities to its Iran sanctions list, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation announced in a pair of notices.
The House approved several export control-related bills late Sept. 9, including the Remote Access Security Act, which is designed to close a loophole that has allowed China to use cloud service providers to access advanced U.S. computing chips remotely (see 2409040046).