The U.K. added 22 new entries to its Russia sanctions list, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation announced Nov. 30. All 22 are government and military officials, including officials responsible for promoting and enforcing the conscription of citizens to fight the war in Ukraine, OFSI said. The listings include Russian Deputy Prime Minister Denis Valentinovich Manturov; 10 governors and regional heads, including the governors of Dagestan and Kalmykia; five military commissars of Moscow, the Kaliningrad and Rostov regions; Arkady Alexandrovich Gostev, director of the Russian Federal Penitentiary Service; Ivan Prokopenko, head of the Tula Federal Penitentiary Service; Dmitry Bezrukikh, head of the Federal Punishment Service of the Rostov Region; and Ella Pamfilova, chairperson of the Central Election Commission.
The maritime industry should see an increase in Russian sanctions evasion tactics as the U.S., the EU and others prepare to set a price cap on Russian oil, said David Tannenbaum, a former sanctions compliance specialist at the Office of Foreign Assets Control. Logistics companies and others should be on the lookout for a rise in deceptive maritime practices, which could call for more compliance work and recordkeeping to avoid running afoul of U.S. sanctions, said Marco Crusafio, an international shipping lawyer with Squire Patton.
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As the U.S. tries to convince allies to adopt similar export controls against China (see 2210270047 and 2210070049), some trading partners have voiced concerns over the U.S.’s strategy, saying they would rather have worked on crafting restrictions alongside the U.S. as opposed to having controls forced upon them, a Commerce Department official said.
The European Council Nov. 28 added sanctions violations to its list of "EU crimes." The move comes amid the EU's bevy of sanctions on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. The council said "it is essential that these measures are fully implemented," with listing sanctions violations as an EU crime the first of two steps to ensure harmonized sanctions enforcement across the bloc, the council said.
The U.K.'s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on Nov. 21 released guidance on the U.K.'s ban on Russian oil and oil products meant for entry into Britain. The guidance explains how to find the origin of oil imports to the U.K. Other sections of the guidance break down the context for the U.K. sanctions on Russian oil, details of the ban and how the ban on Russian oil and oil products will be enforced.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week issued a determination that will prohibit certain shipping services related to Russian oil, and said it will soon announce a price cap on Russian fuel alongside its G-7 partners. The agency also issued a guidance outlining how it plans to implement the price cap -- including compliance requirements for U.S. service providers -- and three related general licenses.
The Drug Enforcement Administration is listing mesocarb, a substance with stimulating properties marketed in Russia for treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder that has no approved medical use and no known therapeutic application in the U.S., under Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, it said in a notice published Nov. 22. “This action imposes the regulatory controls and administrative, civil, and criminal sanctions applicable to schedule I controlled substances on persons who handle (manufacture, distribute, reverse distribute, import, export, engage in research, conduct instructional activities or chemical analysis with, or possess), or propose to handle mesocarb," DEA said. The listing takes effect Dec. 22.
Canada this week imposed additional sanctions on the Alexander Lukashenko regime in Belarus for aiding Russia’s invasion and war in Ukraine. The new designations apply to 22 Belarusian officials, including people involved in stationing and transporting Russian military personnel and equipment. Canada also sanctioned 16 Belarusian companies involved in military manufacturing, technology, engineering, banking and railway transportation.
The U.S. is considering additional sanctions against Iran for supplying Russia with drones, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said during a Nov. 22 call with reporters. The Biden administration has already designated Iranian firms and people involved in the sales of unmanned aerial vehicles to Russia (see 2211150060), including for UAV support efforts in Ukraine, but Kirby said the U.S. can still impose further sanctions.