The U.S. government seized an oil tanker for delivering petroleum products to North Korea in violation of U.S. sanctions and charged a Singaporean national with conspiracy to evade sanctions, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York said in an April 23 news release. Kwek Kee Seng of Singapore and the ship, the M/T Courageous, allegedly brought oil to North Korea via ship-to-ship transfers with North Korean ships and direct shipments to the North Korean port of Nampo. The transfers allegedly took place August-December 2019 when the ship stopped transmitting its location. DOJ said satellite imagery revealed the Courageous engaging in the ship-to-ship transfers of more than $1.5 million worth of oil to an OFAC-designated North Korean ship.

President Joe Biden’s executive order authorizing new Russian sanctions represents a significant expansion of U.S. sanctions authority and paves the way for more trade restrictions in the coming months, law firms said. The measures will cause some companies to rethink their trade ties to Russia, the firms said, especially as tensions between the two countries continues to rise.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control on April 23 removed more than 40 entries from its Specially Designated Nationals List. The entries all had Mexican addresses and were sanctioned under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act. Treasury didn’t immediately provide more information on the delistings.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control on April 21 sanctioned two Myanmar state-owned entities that are “key economic resources” for the Myanmar military. The designations target Myanmar Timber Enterprise (MTE) and Myanmar Pearl Enterprise (MPE), which are responsible for timber and pearl exports from Myanmar, OFAC said. OFAC also deleted 15 Panama-related entries on its Specially Designated Nationals List. The agency didn’t provide more information on the deletions.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control will revoke a Belarus-related general license that authorizes certain transactions with nine sanctioned state-owned entities, OFAC and the State Department said April 19. OFAC issued Belarus General License 2H, replacing License 2G (see 1910220027), which authorizes a 45-day wind-down period for transactions with those entities and any entities in which they own at least 50%. The wind-down period will end 12:01 a.m. June 3.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control fined an Oklahoma steel manufacturer about $435,000 for violating U.S. sanctions against Iran, OFAC said April 19. Alliance Steel committed 61 sanctions violation by maintaining a “business relationship” with an Iranian company for five years, OFAC said.

President Joe Biden signed a sweeping executive order authorizing new sanctions against Russia, allowing the U.S. to designate people and companies operating in Russia’s defense and technology sectors or involved in attempts to influence foreign elections. The order, announced April 15, also authorizes sanctions against a range of Russian government officials and their associates as well as people and companies involved in Russian corruption, actions to “undermine democratic processes,” and human rights violations and transactions designed to circumvent U.S. sanctions.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control added one person to its Specially Designated Nationals List and removed two others, an April 13 notice said. The agency added Audias Flores Silva, a regional commander for the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion, a Mexican drug cartel, OFAC said April 14. The agency also deleted entries for Juan de la Cruz, the director of the Banco Nacional de Cuba, and Jose Gutierrez Reyes, who is listed with an address in Mexico. OFAC did not provide further information on the SDN deletions.

Several federal agencies are seeking comments to determine whether an interagency risk management guidance supports banks’ compliance with sanctions and anti-money laundering requirements, a joint notice said April 12. The Supervisory Guidance on Model Risk Management, developed by the Federal Reserve board of governors and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, describes the elements of effective bank risk management programs and is meant to help banks better comply with U.S. sanctions requirements, among other regulations. The agencies are asking for feedback on how well the guidance helps banks comply with Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctions. “The agencies seek this information to enhance their understanding of bank practices in these areas and determine whether additional explanation or clarification may increase transparency, effectiveness, or efficiency,” said the notice, which was issued by the OCC, the Federal Reserve board of governors, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the National Credit Union Administration and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. Comments are due June 11.

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