Russia recently introduced a bill to revise regulations for its sanctions regimes and its countermeasures against U.S. sanctions, an Aug. 21 EU Sanctions blog post said. Among other changes, the bill would expand the scope of sanctions to apply to entities owned or controlled 25% or more by a sanctioned person or entity. The bill would also impose reporting requirements for financial institutions on measures they are taking to implement sanctions, and create a new penalty that would suspend or revoke a financial institution's license “in the event of repeated sanctions violations,” the post said.
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:
Companies across the world are increasingly struggling to expand their exports due to a rise in trade retaliation, trade experts said. Although exporters can find some stability by diversifying their markets, they should continue to expect unpredictability, particularly as countries react to changing U.S. tariffs. “You have to love riding roller coasters right now as a trade professional,” said Kim Campbell, president of MKMarin Trade Services, a Canadian trade consulting firm. “If you don't have that temperament, I think you're just going to be nothing but frustrated and heartbroken most of the time.”
The United Nations Security Council on Aug. 14 rejected a U.S. resolution to extend the Iranian arms embargo, raising the possibility of the U.S. invoking snapback sanctions under the Iran nuclear deal. Only the U.S. and the Dominican Republic voted in favor. Russia and China voted against; 11 members abstained, including France, Germany and the United Kingdom. All three previously said they would support an extension of the arms embargo (see 2006220020), which is scheduled to expire in October.
European countries need to increase sanctions against Venezuela to force a regime change and limit Nicolas Maduro’s ability to evade U.S. restrictions, said Carrie Filipetti, the State Department’s assistant secretary for the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs. Filipetti also said more U.S.-European cooperation can help limit the Maduro regime’s access to gold supply chains, which it uses for funding.
Three Republican senators threatened U.S. sanctions against a German port for helping to build Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline (see 2007150021), urging the port to stop providing “goods, services and support” for the project.” In an Aug. 5 letter to Fahrhafen Sassnitz GmbH, operator of Mukran Port, Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas, Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin said the port should immediately stop supporting the Russian-flagged vessels Fortuna and Akademik Cherskiy.
China issued and implemented revised protocols for customs procedures related to dairy trade with Russia, an Aug. 10 Chinese customs notice said, according to an unofficial translation. The protocols include revised inspection and quarantine requirements.
Democratic and Republican senators called on the State Department to do more to pressure the Nicolas Maduro regime in Venezuela, saying the U.S.’s approach, which they called ineffective, should include more multilateral support and stronger sanctions against Maduro’s allies. Several senators said they would back legislation to grant the administration more sanctions powers.
The U.S. on July 31 sanctioned a Chinese state-controlled organization and two Chinese officials for human rights violations in Xinjiang. The sanctions target the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, former XPCC Party Secretary Sun Jinlong and XPCC Deputy Party Secretary Peng Jiarui.
The Bureau of Industry and Security has begun a broad review of new export controls on surveillance technologies going to China, which may also include additions to the agency’s Entity List, Acting Commerce Undersecretary for Industry and Security Cordell Hull said. Hull called the review “comprehensive” and “in-depth,” saying it could lead to controls over advanced surveillance tools, artificial intelligence software and biometric technologies.
The State Department updated its guidance for the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act to address sanctions related to Russian energy export pipelines (see 2007150021), especially Nord Stream 2 and the second line of TurkStream, a notice released July 22 said. The agency deleted portions of the guidance that limited the focus of the act’s sanctions authorities to Russian pipeline projects for which a contract was signed on or after Aug. 2, 2017, the notice said. The agency also clarified that the “focus of implementation” will include Russian pipeline projects, such as Nord Stream 2, a pipeline from Russia to Europe, and the second line of TurkStream, from Russia to Turkey.