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Andrea Tovar

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US Government imposes new sanctions on Russia, designates several Russian technology companies and other persons, bans US financial institutions from dealing in Ruble-denominated Russian sovereign debt, and issues updated guidance and FAQs on PEESA and on US arms embargo on Russia

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In the past several days, the US Government has issued a slew of sanctions measures targeting Russia. These represent the first major escalation of sanctions against Russia under the Biden Administration and, according to a White House Fact Sheet, are stated to be in response to Russia’s “harmful foreign activities,” including efforts to undermine free and fair democratic elections and institutions, malicious cyber activities (including the recent SolarWinds incident), transnational corruption, targeting of dissidents and journalists,…

US Government imposes sanctions against Burma

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On February 10, 2021, President Biden issued Executive Order 14014 “Blocking Property with Respect to the Situation in Burma” (EO 14014), which provides for the imposition of sanctions on certain Burmese parties in response to the Burmese military’s coup against the democratically elected civilian government in Burma. In parallel with the issuance of EO 14014, the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated thirteen parties on February 10, 2021 and two parties on February 22, 2021 connected…

US – Commerce publishes interim final rule on Securing the Information and Communications Technology and Services Supply Chain; Comments due March 22, 2021

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On January 19, 2021, the Commerce Department published an interim final rule to implement President Trump’s 2019 Executive Order 13873 on “Securing the Information and Communications Technology and Services Supply Chain” (“Interim Rule”). The Interim Rule was issued following the closure of the public comment period on January 10, 2021 on the proposed rules issued on November 27, 2019 (“Proposed Rules”) to implement Executive Order 13873. For more information on Executive Order 13873 and the Proposed Rules, please see our blog…

US State Department announces designation of Cuba as a State Sponsor of Terrorism

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On January 11, 2021, the US State Department published a press release announcing Cuba’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism (“SST”) for allegedly providing support for acts of international terrorism in granting safe harbor to terrorists. Cuba was originally designated as an SST in 1982 but was delisted in 2015 by President Barack Obama. Cuba’s SST designation follows increasingly stringent sanctions imposed by the US Government including restriction on remittances to Cuba and further restrictions on…

US Government designates the Central Bank of Syria and high-ranking officials in the Syrian Government and issues related FAQs

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On December 22, 2020, the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) formally added the Central Bank of Syria (“CBOS”) to the List of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (the “SDN List”) along with certain high-ranking officials in the Syrian government and affiliated entities. Concurrent with OFAC’s designations, the US State Department (State Department) designated six Syrian individuals pursuant to Section 2 of Executive Order 13894, “Blocking Property and Suspending Entry of Certain Persons Contributing to the Situation…

US Government removes Sudan from State Sponsor of Terrorism list

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On December 14, 2020, the US Government announced Sudan’s removal from the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism (the “SST List”).  This rescission of Sudan as an SST follows an agreement in October for Sudan to be removed from the list and the lapse of a 45 day congressional notification period. The federal register notice regarding the rescission is available here. As detailed in our previous blog post here, the US Government revoked Sudan sanctions in October 2017, but Sudan’s…

US – BIS amends Export Administration Regulations to implement export enforcement provisions of ECRA

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On November 17, 2020, the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) issued a final rule (“Final Rule”) amending and clarifying certain provisions of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to make them consistent with the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (ECRA). The Final Rule also amends certain provisions of the EAR (not strictly concerning ECRA implementation) regarding the issuance of export licenses and denial orders and the payment of civil penalties. For more…

US Government restricts remittances to Cuba

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On October 27, 2020, the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) published a final rule amending the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR) restricting certain remittance-related transactions to and from Cuba (the “Final Rule”). OFAC also published updated and new Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) related to transactions with Cuba. Significantly, the recent amendments will have the practical effect of making remittances to Cuba more difficult. The Final Rule becomes effective on November 26, 2020 and is…

US – FEMA extends duration of restrictions on exports of PPE and modifies products covered

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On August 10, 2020, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) issued a temporary final rule extending and modifying FEMA’s previously imposed restrictions on the export from the United States of certain personal protective equipment (PPE Products) used in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic (“Extension Rule”). The original restrictions on exports of PPE Products imposed by FEMA were published on April 10, 2020. The Extension Rule became effective August 10, 2020, and will be in…

President Trump signs into law the Hong Kong Autonomy Act

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On July 14, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Hong Kong Autonomy Act (“HKAA”) providing for the imposition of sanctions on foreign persons who materially contribute to the undermining of Hong Kong’s autonomy by the Government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and foreign financial institutions who engage in significant transactions with such foreign persons. During a press conference announcing the signing of the HKAA, President Trump also indicated that he had signed an Executive…

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