The European Commission on March 20 issued new guidance for its ban that blocks EU people and companies from carrying out transactions with certain “infrastructure” in Russia, including seaports and airports. The frequently asked questions clarify the types of transactions that are either prohibited or exempt; specify that the ports can be used for the transit of certain coal and other commodities to the EU; outline how the EU may assess possible violations; describe reporting requirements; and more.
The U.K. amended the sanctions listing of Red Box Energy Services under its Russia sanctions regime on March 20. The entity's listing now says the company "has been involved" in the Russian energy sector instead of saying it "is involved" in the sector.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned an oil refinery and its CEO for buying and refining hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Iranian crude oil, including from vessels linked to the Yemen-based Houthis.
The U.K. made several changes to its sanctions list this week for entries involving Russia and Belarus.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week finalized a rule to extend the agency’s sanctions-related recordkeeping requirements from five years to 10 years, aligning those rules with a similar expansion of the statute of limitations for civil and criminal violations of U.S. sanctions (see 2407220022 and 2404290071). The changes, outlined in an interim final rule published in September (see 2409110017), take effect March 21.
The Council of the European Union on March 17 added nine people and one entity to its Democratic Republic of the Congo sanctions list for committing "serious human rights violations and abuses" through the sustenance of the "armed conflict, instability and insecurity" in the DRC.
The State Department released its Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act annual report for 2024, detailing actions it took to impose Magnitsky sanctions last year, including 70 foreign person designations. Those designations represent "the most geographically expansive set of designations to date," the agency said, targeting more than 19 countries from "nearly every major geographic region." The report lists each of the designations and why they were designated.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned Jumilca Sandivel Hernandez Perez, a “key leader” of a Guatemala-based criminal group that it said has smuggled thousands of migrants from Guatemala through Mexico and into the U.S. OFAC said Hernandez Perez leads the “Lopez Human Smuggling Organization,” which was previously sanctioned in July (see 2407250042).
The Treasury Department this week issued a new alert about the risks faced by U.S. and foreign financial institutions from sanctioned international cartels. The alert highlights the Trump administration’s increased enforcement focus on cartels, including its decision earlier this year to label several Latin America-based criminal groups as foreign terrorist organizations and specially designated global terrorists (see 2502190011 and 2502200019).
President Donald Trump has instructed the Treasury Department to increase sanctions "to bring President [Vladimir] Putin to the table," if necessary, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said. He stated that Trump had "instructed [him] to rethink the sanctions regime" and that the administration is "going for the maximum impact sanctions."