On June 5, 2020, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) issued four new frequently asked questions (“FAQs”) that define key terms used in secondary sanctions added to the Iran sanctions...more
In a much-anticipated and far-reaching action, on May 14, 2020, the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), and the U.S. Coast Guard issued an advisory (the...more
It’s no secret that Iran has been one of the hardest hit countries by COVID-19 (commonly referred to as the “coronavirus”). As in other countries, this outbreak has strained Iran’s healthcare system and has instigated a surge...more
On February 18, 2020, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) added Rosneft Trading S.A. (“Rosneft Trading”) and its president to the agency’s List of Specially Designated Nationals and...more
Over the past few days, we here at MoFo’s National Security Practice Group have outlined the extraordinary pace of activity that the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) maintained in 2019 as...more
As we mentioned in the first part of our U.S. Sanctions Year in Review series, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) had an extraordinarily busy year in 2019, and its enforcement activity...more
As we enter 2020, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) may need time to catch its breath after an exceptionally busy year. 2019 showed us that the Trump Administration continues to rely on...more
As it nears the end of the calendar and legislative year, Congress is preparing to take long-awaited action to kill Russia’s Nord Stream 2 and TurkStream natural gas pipeline projects – months before Nord Stream 2’s...more
On September 24, 2019, the U.S. Department of the Treasury ("Treasury") published in the United States Federal Register the proposed regulations developed by the United States Committee on Foreign Investment (CFIUS) to...more
On October 14, President Trump issued an Executive order (“E.O.”) imposing sanctions on Turkey in response to Turkey’s military offensive in northern Syria. New E.O. 13894 authorizes the U.S. Departments of State and the...more
The U.S. Department of Commerce (“Commerce”) has added 28 Chinese organizations to the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) Entity List, a move that effectively cuts off these entities from directly or indirectly acquiring...more
This is the second in our multipart series of alerts addressing proposed regulations published in the Federal Register on September 24, 2019, for the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to implement...more
As part of the 18th anniversary of the September 11 attacks earlier this month, the Trump Administration effectively declared the old adage that “one person’s terrorist is another person’s freedom fighter” does not apply with...more
Hot on the heels of the “Saturday Surprise,” the Trump Administration initiated “Monday Madness” earlier this week when the President issued new Executive Order (E.O.) 13884 blocking any property and interests in property of...more
8/9/2019
/ Blocked Entities ,
Blocked Person ,
CFIUS ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
General Licenses ,
Humanitarian Assistance ,
National Security ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
SDN List ,
Trump Administration ,
Venezuela
The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has a well-earned reputation in the sanctions bar for ruining weekends. The agency responsible for implementing and enforcing U.S. economic sanctions has...more
On May 2, 2019, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) published its first-ever Framework for OFAC Compliance Commitments (“Framework”), detailing the essential components of a sanctions...more
Back in February, we told you about the Defending American Security from Kremlin Aggression Act, or “DASKA,” a bipartisan effort to impose new sanctions on Russia. Interest in action against the Kremlin has only increased...more
With tensions rising in the Persian Gulf, and Iran on the brink of pulling out of portions of the Iran nuclear deal, President Trump issued new Executive Order 13871 last Wednesday, May 8, 2019, imposing sanctions on Iran’s...more
Since it was enacted in March 2018, the Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data Act (CLOUD Act) has been controversial with privacy advocates in the United States and the subject of sustained criticism by the European...more
On a bizarre day for sanctions that saw President Trump seemingly take action related to North Korea via tweet – revoke recent measures? scuttle pending ones? – the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control...more
In another indication of the U.S. Department of Justice’s increased focus on the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), Assistant Attorney General John Demers announced that the Department is overhauling its FARA enforcement...more
UPDATE: Two days after we issued our Top 20 sanctions compliance lessons from recent OFAC enforcement cases, OFAC issued an unprecedented enforcement one-two punch. On February 7, 2019, OFAC settled an enforcement case with...more
Last Thursday, January 31, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued its first enforcement action of 2019, a fascinating case involving false eyelashes that teaches that virtually any...more
In what was perhaps an inevitable escalation, on Monday, January 28, 2019, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions on Venezuelan state-owned oil and gas company Petróleos de...more
On Sunday, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced that it lifted sanctions on three entities associated with Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, including the second-largest aluminum...more