The European Commission last week opened its public comment period as it prepares guidelines for exports of cyber-surveillance items. The guidance will look to aid exporters in complying with and conducting due diligence under the EU’s dual-use export controls. The commission is accepting feedback from industry associations, governments, academia, research institutions, nongovernmental organizations and others involved in exporting dual-use goods and technologies. The submission deadline is June 9.
The State Department released its annual Hong Kong Policy Act report last week, covering “conditions” in Hong Kong from April 2022 through January. The report covers U.S. “sanctions engagement” with Hong Kong, including sanctions and export controls imposed during the covered time period.
The State Department is seeking public comments on an information collection related to disclosures of violations of the Arms Export Control Act. Comments are due May 3.
Australia last week released the public submissions it received as it reviews its autonomous sanctions regulations, which are scheduled to expire April 1, 2024. Submissions came from Australian financial institutions, law firms, universities and others.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control last week sanctioned Tabacalera del Este, a Paraguay-based cigarette manufacturer, and issued a new general license authorizing certain transactions with the company. OFAC said Tabacalera is owned 50% or more by former Paraguayan President Horacio Manuel Cartes Jara, who was sanctioned by the agency in January for corruption, along with another of his companies, Tabacos USA (see 2301260073).
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on March 31 fined a California money services firm just over $72,000 for violating U.S. sanctions against Iran, Cuba and Venezuela. OFAC said Uphold HQ, a global digital trading platform, failed to screen transactions for customers located in Iran or Cuba and for employees of a sanctioned Venezuelan energy company, resulting in 152 transactions worth more than $180,000.
Japan last week said it plans to impose new export controls on certain semiconductor manufacturing equipment, a move that could align its restrictions with some of the sweeping China controls released by the U.S. in October. The Japanese restrictions will apply to 23 types of chip items and covering six categories of equipment used in chip manufacturing, including cleaning, deposition, lithography and etching, Reuters reported March 31.
The U.S. last week fined Wells Fargo nearly $100 million for allegedly breaching U.S. sanctions against Iran, Syria and Sudan, violations that stemmed from its "unsafe or unsound" sanctions compliance practices. The bank was fined $30 million by the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control and $67.8 million by the Federal Reserve after OFAC said Wells Fargo's subsidiary allowed a European bank to use its trade finance platform to process more than $500 million in sanctioned transactions.
The European Commission will present ideas this year on a potential outbound investment screening regime, which could look to prevent European investments in sensitive Chinese technology sectors, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said last week. She also said the EU will consider new trade restrictions on dual-use goods, including those that may be used for human rights abuses.
A group of European countries not in the EU aligned with two recent sanctions moves byff the EU, the European Council said. Under the bloc's restrictions regime against Iran, the council amended the list of people and entities subject to sanctions. The countries of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, Ukraine, Moldova, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway also imposed the decision.