The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Feb. 17 sanctioned Sergio Armando Orozco Rodriguez for his involvement with the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG) in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico. CJNG traffics a “significant proportion” of fentanyl and other drugs into the U.S., OFAC said, and Rodriguez helps launder money for the group, and carries out extortion schemes. OFAC previously sanctioned CJNG in 2015 and 2021.
Japan will work with other G-7 countries to impose sanctions against Russia if the country invades Ukraine, Japan Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said this week, according to an unofficial translation of his comments. “At this point in time, Japan is strongly demanding a solution through diplomatic negotiations,” Hayashi told reporters during a Feb. 15 news conference. “If an invasion by Russia occurs, Japan should take appropriate measures in cooperation with the G-7 and other international communities according to the actual situation, including imposing sanctions.”
The Office of Foreign Assets Control is adding regulations to implement a pair of executive orders from November 2020 and June 2021 related to securities investments that finance Communist Chinese military companies. The regulations prohibit the purchase or sale of securities with any of the listed people or entities. In addition, the secretary of the treasury can designate further entities that have operated in the defense, surveillance, or related sectors of the Chinese economy.
The Russian government planned to meet with about 100 domestic electronics manufacturers, consumers and financial firms Feb. 12 to discuss methods to avoid various trade restrictions imposed by foreign countries, according to an unofficial translation of a Feb. 11 report from the Russian daily Kommersant. The talks, planned as Russia prepares a military invasion into Ukraine, were expected to include a “strategic session” on how the Russian companies can “diversify import channels” to mitigate the restrictions. Officials were to speak about “adjusting measures to support electronics manufacturers, developing independent chip production in Russia, as well as the prospects for import substitution in the segment of laptops, workstations and servers,” the report said. Companies expected to participate include SberBank, Rostelecom, Baikal Electronics and Rostec. The U.S., the European Union and others are preparing a new set of export controls and sanctions against Russia if it further invades Ukraine (see 2201250042).
President Joe Biden froze U.S.-held assets in the central bank of Afghanistan via an executive order issued Feb. 11. In response to "the widespread humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan," the president declared a national emergency. Citing the "potential for a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan" that could threaten U.S. "national security and foreign policy," Biden ordered the freeze to facilitate access to $3.5 billion of those assets for the benefit of the Afghan people and their urgent need for "food security, livelihoods support, water, sanitation, health, hygiene, shelter and settlement assistance." The order blocks the transfer of bank property held in the U.S. by U.S. financial institutions. All property that is held in the U.S. by an American institution is, as of Feb. 11, blocked and may not be transferred, paid, exported, withdrawn, or otherwise dealt in, and will be transferred into a consolidated account held at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control is removing sanctions regulations on Burundi, it said in a notice. It follows President Joe Biden's Nov. 18 executive order (see 2111180014) declaring an end to the state of national emergency in Burundi, citing the "significantly altered" situation over the past year, "including the transfer of power following elections in 2020, significantly decreased violence, and ... reforms across multiple sectors."
President Joe Biden extended a national emergency that authorizes certain sanctions against people and entities in Myanmar, the White House said Feb. 7. The “situation” resulting from the military coup in 2021 continues to pose a threat to U.S. national security and foreign policy, the White House said The emergency was extended for one year beyond Feb. 10.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control is adding Ethiopia sanctions regulations to implement the Sept. 17 executive order "Imposing Sanctions on Certain Persons With Respect to the Humanitarian and Human Rights Crisis in Ethiopia" (see 2109170036).
The Biden administration is considering a request from Chevron to reinstate a license that would allow it to trade in sanctioned Venezuelan oil cargo and recoup unpaid debt, Reuters reported Feb. 7. Under the Trump administration, the U.S. oil company and others were authorized to “take and export Venezuelan oil to recoup dividends and debt from joint ventures” with Petróleos de Venezuela, the country’s state-run energy company, the report said. The “arrangement” was suspended in 2020 under Trump’s maximum pressure campaign on sanctions.
The Biden administration last week restored a sanctions waiver for Iran’s civil nuclear program as the sides continue indirect talks about a U.S. return to the Iranian nuclear deal (see 2112290022). The waiver -- which was notified to Congress last week, according to a senior State Department official -- would allow certain third-party countries to participate in nonproliferation work involving Iran’s nuclear program. The waiver is "essential to ensuring Iran’s swift compliance with its nuclear commitments" under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the official said Feb. 7. "Absent this sanctions waiver, detailed technical discussions with third parties regarding disposition of stockpiles and other activities of nonproliferation value cannot take place."