The European Council on March 25 added Mohamed Ibrahim al-Shafi'i Al-Salem, the leader of the ISIL-affiliated group Islamic State Sahel Province, to its ISIL (Da'esh) and al-Qaeda sanctions regime, the council announced. The ISIL affiliate mainly operates in Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali.
Sens. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, and Marco Rubio, R-Fla., have both placed holds on President Joe Biden’s nomination of Erik Woodhouse to head the State Department’s Office of Sanctions Coordination.
The U.S. this week sanctioned 11 people and entities supporting the Bashar al-Assad-led government in Syria, including companies that ship illegal drugs. OFAC said the designations target traffickers of Captagon -- the brand name of a “highly addictive amphetamine-type stimulant” trafficked in the Middle East and Europe -- along with entities helping Syria evade sanctions.
The U.S. this week sanctioned six entities, one person and two tankers that have helped ship goods and facilitate financial transactions on behalf of the Iranian military, the Iran-backed Houthis and Hezbollah. The Office of Foreign Assets Control said they are tied to sanctioned Houthi financial facilitator Sa’id al-Jamal (see 2403060017).
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U.S. export controls on clean technology goods to China would likely be “ineffective” and could backfire on American businesses trying to develop the next generation of green energy products, a researcher for a major European think tank said in a new report this month. The report argues that solar panels, wind turbines, electric vehicle batteries and other green technologies don’t warrant new controls because they have “no dual-use or human-rights applications,” and restrictions could further strain the already fraught U.S.-China relationship.
Four Republican House members led by Rep. Nathaniel Moran of Texas have asked the Commerce and State departments to describe the measures they are considering to counteract what appears to be increasing collaboration between China and Iran on military drone development and distribution.
The European Council on March 25 extended until March 31, 2026, its sanctions related to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the European Council announced. The sanctions target those who undermine the sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina, threaten the security situation in the nation or "undermine the Dayton/Paris General Framework Agreement for Peace."
The Bureau of Industry and Security recently officially launched its new website. The agency had been operating a beta version of the website since at least December (see 2312040016). The new site has tabs on licensing information, enforcement updates, export guidance, a tool to search the Export Administration Regulations and more.
The Senate voted 51-47 on March 23 to defeat a proposal from Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, that would have prohibited the Biden administration from waiving certain sanctions against Iran.