Australia will soon impose an additional 35% tariff on all imports from Russia and Belarus in response to Moscow’s war in Ukraine. Australia will rescind its most-favored-nation tariff treatment for both countries, effective April 25, the country’s foreign ministry said March 31. It said it will “continue to work with partners to impose the maximum costs on Russia,” including sanctions and other trade restrictions (see 2203210006 and 2203180006).
Tuqiang Xie, of Irvine, California, was sentenced to a year in prison for brokering the sales of export-controlled defense articles from China and filing a false corporate tax return, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois said March 31. In 2019, Xie pleaded guilty to one count of violating the Arms Export Control Act and one count of filing a false tax return. Sentencing took place after hearing in Chicago. In the plea agreement, Xie admitted to using his Irvine-based company, Bio-Medical Optics, as a broker for the shipment of defense articles listed on the U.S. Munitions List and the U.S. Munitions Import List. Xie had not obtained the required export license for these items.
The Bureau of Industry and Security this week revoked export privileges for five people after they illegally exported defense items or weapons ammunition.
The House should add stronger sanctions measures to the Russia-related bills recently passed out of the Financial Services Committee (see 2203180021), including more serious capital market and investment penalties, the Coalition for a Prosperous America said in a March 29 letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
President Joe Biden extended national emergencies that authorize certain sanctions against Somalia and “significant malicious cyber-enabled activities,” the White House said March 30. Both emergencies were extended for one year, from April 12, 2022, and March 1, 2022, respectively.
The U.K. added 17 new entries to its Russia sanctions regime, including big players in Russian state media, following Russia's military assault on Ukraine. The newly listed parties include Anton Anisimov, editor-in-chief of Sputnik, the Russian state-funded international news agency, along with Sputnik's parent company Rossiya Segodnya and TV-Novosti, another major Russian media organization. In one notice, the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation added 12 individuals and two entities. In another notice, OFSI added three entities -- Photon Pro LLP, Majory LLP and Djeco Group LP -- to the Russia sanctions regime, subjecting them to an asset freeze, for involvement in destabilising Ukraine or undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty or independence of Ukraine.
The U.K. amended one entry under its Russia sanctions regime and removed another, in a March 30 notice. The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation amended the listing for Sergey Pavlovich Ivanov, changing his middle name from Borisovich to Pavlovich. OFSI also dropped a duplicate of the listing for Aleksander Aleksandrovich Mikheev. It said the original listing for Mikheev continues to apply and is still subject to an asset freeze.
The Treasury Department this week expanded its sanctions authorities to cover Russia’s aerospace, electronics and marine sectors, building on an April 2021 executive order that targeted the country’s defense and technology sectors (see 2104150019). Treasury also announced a host of new designations against Russian people and entities, including the country’s largest chip maker.
The Bureau of Industry and Security is adding 120 entities to its Entity List for supporting the Russian and Belarusian militaries, the agency said in a final rule. The additions include military end-users in Russia and Belarus, along with others that have tried to send export-controlled items to Russia’s military, BIS said. The parties will be subject to a “highly restrictive” policy of denial for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, the agency said, and no license exceptions will be available. The additions, which will be published in the Federal Register April 7, take effect April 1.
U.S. export controls against Russia have proven to be effective more quickly than expected, said Thea Kendler, the Bureau of Industry and Security's assistant secretary for export administration. While the U.S. restrictions have hit key Russian industrial and defense inputs, Kendler said a major reason behind their success has been the substantial buy-in from allies in Europe and Asia.