The Treasury’s Sept. 3 sanctions against three space-related Iranian entities were aimed at curbing Iran’s nuclear development and missile programs, the State Department said. The three sanctioned entities -- the Iran Space Agency, the Iran Space Research Center and the Astronautics Research Institute (see 1909030054) -- are all run by the Iranian government and develop technologies that can be used in Iranian missile systems, the State Department said. Technologies such as space launch vehicles are virtually identical and interchangeable with those used in intercontinental ballistic missiles, and when put to use in the civilian space program allow Iran’s space agencies “to gain experience with various technologies” needed to develop rocket-propelled weapons delivery systems, the U.S. said.
The United Nations Security Council renewed its Mali sanctions until Aug. 31, 2020, the council said in an Aug. 29 notice. The sanctions place asset freezes on certain Malian entities and people.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control published the Nicaraguan Sanctions Regulations, detailing what transactions are blocked and exempted and listing penalties for violations of the sanctions, OFAC said in a notice. The agency said it plans to release a “more comprehensive” guidance, general licenses and policy statements about the regulations. The sanctions take effect Sept. 4.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control announced sanctions on three Iranian entities and made changes to one entry on its Specially Designated Nationals List, according to a Sept. 3 sanctions notice. The action targets Astronautics Research Institute, the Iran Space Agency and the Iran Space Research Center. OFAC also added identifying information for Alfredo Leyva Beltran, a Mexican national listed with the Specially Designated Narcotics Trafficker Kingpin (SDNTK) indication. OFAC did not immediately provide more details.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned an oil tanker that shipped more than 2 million barrels of Iranian crude oil to aid Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force, Treasury said in an Aug. 30 press release. The tanker, Adrian Darya 1, and its captain, Akhilesh Kumar, are being sanctioned for providing support to terrorism, Treasury said. Treasury said the IRGC-QF’s “highest-ranking officials” oversee exports of Iran’s oil and hide its origin, sending it to Syria or “IRGC-QF proxies across the region.” The ship, formerly known as Grace 1, was recently detained by Gibraltar and released over U.S. objections (see 1908190036).
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control designated two people and three entities under its North Korean sanctions regulations and added a ship to its Specially Designated Nationals List, Treasury said in an Aug. 30 press release. OFAC designated Taiwan-based Huang Wang Ken and Chen Mei Hsiang and Taiwan-based companies Jui Pang Shipping Co Ltd (Jui Pang) and Jui Zong Ship Management Co Ltd (Jui Zong). OFAC also sanctioned Hong Kong-based Jui Cheng Shipping Company Limited and added Shang Yuan Bao, a ship, to its SDN List.
the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned four people and four companies for helping to move money between Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp-Qods Force and the operational arm for Hamas, Treasury said Aug. 29. OFAC designated Muhammad Sarur, Kamal Abdelrahman Aref Awad, Fawaz Mahmud Ali Nasser, Muhammad Kamal al-Ayy and four Lebanon-based entities: Jammal Trust Bank, Trust Insurance, Trust Insurance Services and Trust Life Insurance Company.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned five entities and five people for their involvement in procurement networks for Iran’s military, Treasury said in an Aug. 28 press release. The sanctions target two major networks led by Iranian nationals Hamed Dehghan and Seyed Hossein Shariat.
U.S. and foreign companies have “struggled” to interpret the scope of the U.S.’s most recent executive order and subsequent general licenses for Venezuela, leading some to submit requests for more guidance, according to an Aug. 22 post on the Winston & Strawn website.
The U.S. is not expecting major companies to use INSTEX, the European payment system designed to allow countries to trade with Iran despite U.S. sanctions, said Brian Hook, a State Department senior policy adviser. Hook also said INSTEX will likely never be fully operational.