Reps. Jefferson Shreve, R-Ind., and Beth Van Duyne, R-Texas, have introduced a bill that would require the Treasury Department to designate foreign entities that run large-scale scams on Americans as Foreign Financial Threat Organizations, Shreve announced last week.
The U.K. plans to impose swifter and more “robust” penalties on sanctions violators as part of an effort to better deter companies and others from breaching trade and financial restrictions, the country said this week.
The Council of the European Union on April 25 extended its sanctions on Myanmar for one year, pushing them to April 30, 2026. The restrictions currently apply to 106 individuals and 22 entries and include an asset freeze, arms embargo and restriction on the export of dual-use goods and equipment for monitoring communication that may be used for internal repression.
The U.S. should designate the Polisario Front as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) for its destabilizing activities in North Africa, according to a new Hudson Institute report.
A British court last week sentenced two Russians, including one former senior trade official, to prison for violating U.K. sanctions against Russia. The case marks the first conviction in the U.K. for a breach of sanctions under its Russia Sanctions Regulations, the Crown Prosecution Service said.
Rep. Michael Baumgartner, R-Wash., reintroduced a bill April 3 that would require an annual report to Congress on sanctions imposed under the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act, a 2020 law that aims to address the wrongful detainment of U.S. nationals abroad.
The House Republican Study Committee unveiled a package of sanctions bills April 1 aimed at backing the Trump administration’s efforts to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons and supporting terrorism.
The U.K. said it generally won’t penalize an organization for using a “suspense account” to temporarily record sanctioned assets, the country’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation said in new frequently asked question 145 published this week.
China this week published new rules, effective March 23, for the implementation of its anti-foreign sanctions law, clarifying what types of property Beijing can freeze in response to people and companies that violate the law, who China can target with the restrictions, and more.
The Treasury Department included its Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFI) in the Trump administration’s hiring freeze but is now considering giving it relief from the pause due to its national security role, the department told lawmakers.