The European Union threatened more sanctions on Venezuela if no “concrete results” are reached during the upcoming negotiations scheduled between Venezuelan leader Juan Guaido and opposition-party leader Nicolas Maduro, the EU Council said in a July 16 press release. The council said it welcomes the negotiations, which are being brokered by Norway, and said the two sides must reach a “genuine engagement” that results in “internationally monitored elections.” If not, “the EU will further expand its targeted measures,” the council said.
The European Union is looking at options for potential Turkey sanctions “in light of Turkey’s continued drilling activities in the Eastern Mediterranean,” the European Council said in a July 15 press release. The council directed the European Commission to “continue work on options for targeted measures” directed at Turkey. The announcement stems from Turkey’s “illegal” drilling west and northeast of Cyprus despite the EU’s “repeated calls” to stop, the council said.
Britain is considering approving new powers for enforcement of financial sanctions violations, according to a July 15 post on the EU Sanctions blog. The considerations, outlined in the United Kingdom’s 2019-2022 Economic Crime Plan, published in July, could give “private sector supervisors” power to “take enforcement action where there are deficiencies in sanctions implementation,” the post said. The U.K. will also investigate “whether powers to block listings on national security grounds would be appropriate,” the post said.
Days before Turkey followed through on purchases of Russian S-400 missile parts, a State Department official said there would be “consequences” if Turkey followed through on the deal and warned the country would be at risk of U.S. sanctions. R. Clarke Cooper, assistant secretary of State for political-military affairs, told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on July 10 that the Trump administration has “made it very clear” to Turkey that the purchase would likely prompt sanctions. Turkey completed the purchase on July 13, according to a Reuters report. A House resolution passed in June also called for the U.S. to impose sanctions on Turkey if it completed the purchase.
The United Nations Security Council sanctioned five people for failing to implement certain provisions in the Agreement for Peace and Reconciliation in Mali, the council said in a July 10 press release and statement. The sanctioned people are Ahmed Ag Albachar, Houka Houka Ag Alhousseini, Mahri Sidi Amar Ben Daha, Mohamed Ben Ahmed Mahri and Mohamed Ould Mataly, the council said.
An increasing number of foreign entities are using front companies to evade restrictions placed on them after being added to the Commerce Department’s Entity List, said Kevin Kurland, director of Commerce’s Office of Enforcement Analysis.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned Venezuela’s General Directorate of Military Counterintelligence, also known as La Dirección General de Contrainteligencia Militar (DGCIM), for operating in the country’s military sector, Treasury said in a July 11 press release.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control is making a technical correction to its North Korea sanctions regulations, according to a notice scheduled to be published in the Federal Register July 11. The notice adds a word to the text and does not make any regulatory changes.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control announced sanctions on three Iran-backed Hizballah and Lebanese government officials who helped “bolster Iran’s malign activities,” Treasury said in a July 9 press release. The announcement came two days after the State Department threatened more Iran sanctions in response to the country breaching the enriched uranium limit set in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (see 1907080019).
Gibraltar Port and Law Enforcement detained and seized a ship it said was violating European Union sanctions against Syria, Gibraltar said in a July 4 press release. Authorities stopped the “super tanker,” Grace 1, after suspecting it was carrying crude oil bound for Syria’s Banyas Oil Refinery Company, which is sanctioned by the EU. Gibraltar later confirmed the ship was "loaded to capacity with crude oil" and was stopped after it entered Gibraltar territorial waters, according to a July 8 press release. Reuters reported the ship is Iranian and flies a Panama flag.