Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., announced June 20 that they are introducing a bill to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism.
A bipartisan group of 41 House members urged the Biden administration this week to “expeditiously implement” and “fully utilize” newly enacted authorities for sanctioning Iranian oil.
The House Select Committee on China is creating a working group to address China’s role as the world’s leading supplier of precursor chemicals for fentanyl, committee Chairman John Moolenaar, R-Mich., said in a statement June 20. Reps. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., and Jake Auchincloss, D-Mass., will lead the new group. A report the committee released in April said that Congress should approve tougher sanctions and import restrictions to stem the flow of fentanyl into the U.S. (see 2404160039). Many of the new measures recommended in the report would be aimed at China.
The Treasury Department this week sanctioned eight people with ties to the Mexico-based La Nueva Familia Michoacana drug cartel and issued a new advisory to help banks stop transactions linked to sales of fentanyl and other illegal drugs.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control urged a federal court late last month to dismiss the sole remaining claim in a lawsuit challenging the agency’s sanctioning of two former Afghan government officials for corruption.
The EU on June 20 agreed to a 14th package of Russia sanctions that will continue targeting Russia’s oil trade, designate various entities and people for their ties to Russia, and tighten restrictions against a so-called shadow fleet of vessels moving Russian oil below the price cap set by the Group of 7 nations and others (see 2405150025).
Canada this week sanctioned 13 people for their ties to the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny in a Russian prison in February and the country’s “continued gross and systematic violations of human rights.” The designations target senior officials and employees of Russia’s investigation agency, penitentiary service and police force who were involved in Navalny’s “ill-treatment” and death, Canada said. The U.S. and the EU also have sanctioned people responsible for Navalny's imprisonment and death (see 2402230035 and 2403220016).
A government technical advisory committee is working on two reports about compliance challenges posed by the Bureau of Industry and Security's foreign direct product rule and its semiconductor export controls.
The Bureau of Industry and Security will add three entities linked to Kaspersky, a Russian cybersecurity software firm, to the Entity List for working with Russian military and intelligence services. The agency also will place new restrictions on American companies and people buying or using Kaspersky cybersecurity and antivirus software.
The U.S. this week designated people and companies tied to the sanctioned president of the Serb Republic and his family, including businesses they use to generate wealth or evade sanctions, the Office of Foreign Assets Control said. OFAC also issued two new general licenses to authorize certain transactions with the people and companies and updated one existing license.