The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority, known as FINMA, will extend its restrictions on the Swiss wing of Russia's largest bank, Sberbank, until August due to "heightened international sanctions and the continuing risks for the bank's liquidity situation," FINMA announced June 1. In March, the financial regulatory agency imposed the restrictions on Sberbank, deferring the bank's obligations for deposits and banning payments and transactions. The restrictions will now carry until Aug. 2, FINMA said.
The EU and the U.K. have agreed to a coordinated ban on insuring ships carrying Russian oil, Financial Times reported May 31. The measure comes after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's statement over the EU's sixth sanctions package on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. Von der Leyen touted a ban on insurance and reinsurance of Russian ships by EU companies along with a ban on 90% of Russian oil imports by the end of 2022 -- a number arrived at in a bid to appease Hungary.
Fiji's Supreme Court delayed a U.S. bid to seize a $325 million superyacht allegedly belonging to a sanctioned Russian billionaire, granting the yacht's registered owner, Millemarin Investments, a temporary stay on a previous ruling that would have allowed the U.S. to seize the ship this week, according to documents from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, Bloomberg reported June 2.
China issued a response to a recent speech by Secretary of State Antony Blinken announcing the U.S. strategy in its China dealings as being to "invest, align and compete." A spokesperson for China's Foreign Ministry said that the U.S. should not kick-start a new identity based on China as a shared enemy and that, while there will inevitably be competition between the world's two largest economies, the relationship cannot be "defined by competition." The spokesperson then shifted to attack the use of U.S. sanctions, decrying the use of national security as a guise for imposing the sanctions and the restrictions' impact on supply chains. "This is not responsible competition, but rather unscrupulous suppression and containment," the spokesperson said. "If the US insists on defining China-US relations by major power competition and pursuing 'I win you lose' policy objectives, it will only push the two countries to confrontation and conflict and lead the world to division and turmoil."
The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls this week posted the minutes and white papers from its April Defense Trade Advisory Group plenary (see 2204290032). The white papers include presentation information and recommendations from three DTAG working groups, including a recommendation for a new International Traffic in Arms Regulation exemption, recommendations for clarifications and corrections to certain ITAR definitions, and a report on ITAR-related challenges for controlled unclassified information.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on June 2 sanctioned six people who support the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG), a Mexico-based drug trafficking organization. The designations target Severo Flores Mendoza, a "corrupt municipal police" official; Julio Cesar Montero Pinzon, member of a "violent" CJNG enforcement group; and six family members of a former senior member of CJNG: Esther Godoy Arellano, Angelberto Rincon Godoy, Julio Efrain Rincon Godoy and Moises Gonzalez Anguiano. OFAC previously designated CJNG members of the cartel last year (see 2110060017) and 2202180011). The agency said it worked with the Mexican government, Drug Enforcement Agency and CBP to impose the sanctions.
The U.S. on June 2 issued another round of Russia sanctions, targeting additional Russian oligarchs and elites close to Russia President Vladimir Putin. The sanctions also targeted Russian government officials and business leaders, the luxury property of elites, and luxury asset management and service companies key to Russian attempts to evade sanctions.
The U.S. and South Korea may have to build more trust if they want to effectively coordinate on technology competition issues, experts said during a June 2 event hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Although the May meeting between President Joe Biden and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was a good first step, speakers said the two sides will likely face challenges implementing some of their goals, including an improved trade and technology partnership.
The U.K. issued two General Licenses under its Russia sanctions regime, permitting certain action for charities and telecommunications services. Under the "Russia Designated Persons -- Charities and Interim Managers and trustees" license, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation permits an interim manager or trustee of a charity linked to a listed individual or entity to make payments to meet the charity's basic needs until May 30, 2023.
The U.S. announced it is starting negotiations with Taiwan on trade facilitation, sanitary and photosanitary regulations for agricultural imports, digital trade, and coordinating to confront non-market practices. The U.S.-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade is similar to the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework in its scope, but Taiwan was not invited to join IPEF negotiations.