INTERNATIONAL SANCTIONS JULY 2021

1. EUROPEAN UNION

 

RUSSIA

 

• On 12 July 2021, Council Decision (CFSP) 2021/1144 amending Decision 2014/512/CFSP concerning restrictive measures in view of actions by Russia which destabilise the situation in Ukraine was published in the Official Journal of the European

 

In Article 9(1) of Decision 2014/512/CFSP, the first subparagraph is replaced by the following:  ‘1. This Decision shall apply until 31 January 2022’.

 

ANTITERRORISM

 

• Council Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/1188 of 19 July 2021 implementing Article 2(3) of Regulation (EC) No 2580/2001 concerningspecific restrictive measures directed against certain persons and entities with a view to combating terrorism was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 20 July 2021 and repealing Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/138

 

The Council also concluded that the persons, groups, and entities to whom Articles 2, 3 and 4 of Common Position2001/931/CFSP ^[1] apply should continue to be subject to the specific restrictive measures laid down in Regulation (EC) No 2580/2001.

 

2. UNITED STATES

 

CHINA

 

• On July 16, 2021, OFAC, regarding the risk of secondary sanctions: pursuant to the Hong Kong Autonomy Law of 2020 – Public Law 116-149, has added to the SDN List seven (7) natural persons of Chinese nationality for “increasing risks associated with actions taken by the Government of the People’s Republic of China and the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) that could adversely affect U.S. companies operating in the Hong Kong SAR of the People’s Republic of China.”

 

MYANMAR

 

• On 2 July 2021, OFAC, pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 14014 of 10 February 2021, added twenty-two (22) natural persons, all of them Burmese, to the SDN List. Seven (7) of them for the “[R]epression of the pro-democracy movement in the country and the use of lethal force against the people of Burma, including children and members of ethnic minority groups.” The other fifteen (15) persons “are spouses or adult children of previously appointed senior Burmese military officials, whose financial networks have contributed to the ill-made profits of the military.”

 

CUBA

 

• On July 22, 2021, OFAC, pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13818, added to the SDN List one (1) Cuban natural person and one (1) entity for “[t]he connection with the repression of peaceful and pro-democratic protests in Cuba that began on July 11.” This sanction “is based on and enforces the Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act, and targets perpetrators of serious human rights abuses and corruption around the world.”^[2]

 

This sanction implies that all property and interests in the property of these persons that are blocked in accordance with the Cuban Assets Control Regulations, 31 C.F.R. part 515 (CACR), continue to be blocked. The CACR prohibits persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction from dealing with property in which Cuba or a Cuban national has an interest, unless authorized or exempt.

 

In addition, pursuant to the Magnitsky Global Sanctions Regulation, 31 C.F.R. part 583, all property and interests in property of the above-mentioned persons that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked, and all transactions by or in transit with U.S. persons involving property or interest in U.S. persons are prohibited. persons otherwise designated or blocked, unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC, or otherwise exempt. These prohibitions include the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods or services by or for the benefit of any blocked person, or the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods or services from such person.

 

SYRIA

 

• On July 28, 2021, OFAC added to the SDN List eight (8) natural persons of Syrian nationality and ten (10) entities, pursuant to Executive Order 13894 of October 14, 2019,  “Imposes sanctions on those responsible for, accomplices or participants in the commission of serious human rights abuses in Syria”, as well as Executive Order 13572  of September 28, 2010, “EU imposes sanctions on certain persons responsible for or complicit in human rights abuses in Syria, as well as on senior officials of persons designated pursuant to Executive Order 13572, or on entities owned or controlled by them.” These sanctions imply that “all property and interests in property of the designated persons described above that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC.

 

In addition, “[I]t any entity owned, directly or indirectly, by 50% or more of one or more blocked persons is also blocked. Unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC, or exempt, OFAC regulations generally prohibit all transactions conducted by U.S. persons or within (or in transit) the United States that involve any property or interest in the property of designated or otherwise blocked persons. Prohibitions include the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods or services by or for the benefit of any blocked person, or the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods or services from such person.”

 

NEWS ISSUED BY THE U.S. – CUBA TRADE AND ECONOMIC COUNCIL INC.

 

The headaches for the Democratic Party will have to start in November2021 with the presidential election in Nicaragua and the local and regional elections in Venezuela and continue until October 2022 with the presidential election in Brazil, and then until October/November 2024 with the presidential elections in the Republic of Cuba, Mexico and Venezuela^[3]:

 

• On November 7, 2021, nicaraguan voters elect their president and national assembly. H.E. Daniel Ortega, President of Nicaragua (2006- ), and his wife, H.E. Rosario María Murillo Zambrana, Vice President of Nicaragua since 2017, are expected to be re-elected.
• On November 21, 2021, voters in Venezuela choose candidates for local and regional offices.
• On October 5, 2022, voters in Brazil elect their president. If no candidate gets 50% of the vote, there will be a runoff on October 30, 2022.
• On July 1, 2024, Mexico voters elect the successor to the current President, H.E. Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who is limited to one term.
• On October 10, 2024, voters in the Republic of Cuba elect their President. H.E. Miguel Díaz-Canel, President of the Republic of Cuba (2019- ), has not confirmed his intention to seek a second five-year term. President Díaz-Canel, who is also First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Republic of Cuba, is not eligible for a third presidential term.
• E. Nicolás Maduro, President of Venezuela (2013- ), has not confirmed his intention to run for re-election in November 2024 or December 2024 – perhaps coinciding with the November 5, 2024 elections for President of the United States.

 

The big unknown is the impact of the Honourable Donald Trump, 45th President of the United States, who supported President Bolsonaro and former Presidents Díaz-Canel, Maduro and Ortega. He also refrained from commenting on the decisions of the Government of Mexico. Their decisions could challenge the messages preferred by candidates from both political parties throughout 2021, 2022 and 2024. The three likely themes: Capitalism- great, Communism- terrible, Democracy- better, and Socialism- bad. Republicans: strong. The democrats, weak.

 

3. UNITED KINGDOM

 

BELARUS

 

• On 21 July 2021 the British Government, pursuant to The Republic Of Belarus (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019, added to the UK Sanctions List one(1) Belarusian entity for “[P]or participating in, providing support and promoting the wider efforts led by the Belarusian regime to repress civil society and the democratic opposition. The sanction imposed consists of the freezing of assets.

 

ANTICORRUPTION

 

• On 22 July 2021 the British Government, pursuant to The Global Anti-Corruption Sanctions Regulations of 2021, added to the UKSL List one (1) natural person of Zimbabwean nationality for “He benefited from the misappropriation of property when his company exchanged Treasury Bills of the Government of Zimbabwe up to ten times their official value. This meant that the company and this natural person, as its CEO and owner, benefited considerably at the expense of Zimbabwe’s macroeconomic stability.” The sanction imposed consists of the freezing of assets and a travel ban.

 

• On 22 July 2021, the British Government, pursuant to The Global Anti-Corruption Sanctions Regulations of 2021,added to the UKSL List one (1) natural person of Equatoguinean nationality for“[H]aving been implicated in the embezzlement of significant amounts of public property from Equatorial Guinea, as well as bribes, to finance a lavish lifestyle in several countries abroad, including the United States and France, where he owned property whose value was grossly disproportionate compared to his official salary.” The sanction imposed consists of the freezing of assets and a travel ban.

 

• On July 22, 2021, the British Government, pursuant to The Global Anti-Corruption Sanctions Regulations of 2021, has added to the UKSL List one (1) natural person of Colombian and Venezuelan nationality for “[H]aving incurred serious acts of corruption in Venezuela through his participation in two Venezuelan public programs: the “Local Supply and Production Committees” (CLAP) and the Gran Plan de Vivienda Venezuela (GMVV).  In each case, the contracts were improperly awarded by public officials to enterprises owned or controlled by this person, for the benefit of the official or officials and/or another person, including Saab Moran himself. The CLAP programme provided basic foodstuffs at highly inflated prices. In the case of GMVV, Saab Moran’s company only delivered a small part of the products that they had promised to deliver and for which they had paid, appropriating the rest of the funds.”  The sanction imposed consists of the freezing of assets and a travel ban.

 

• On July 22, 2021, the British Government, pursuant to The Global Anti-Corruption Sanctions Regulations of 2021, has added to the UKSL List one (1) natural person of Colombian nationality for “[F]or having committed serious acts of corruption in Venezuela through their participation in two Venezuelan public programs: the “Local Supply and Production Committees” (CLAP) and the Gran Plan de Vivienda Venezuela (GMVV).  In each case, the contracts were improperly awarded for the benefit of an official and/or another person, including the above-mentioned natural person. In the CLAP programme, basic foodstuffs were provided at highly inflated prices. In the case of the GMVV, the Global Construction Fund delivered only a small proportion of the products it had committed to deliver, misappropriating the rest of the funds.  The sanction imposed consists of the freezing of assets and a travel ban.

 

• On 22 July 2021 the British Government, pursuant to The Global Anti-Corruption Sanctions Regulations of 2021, added to the UKSL List one (1) natural person of Iraqi nationality for “[T]he state involved in serious acts of corruption, which involved the embezzlement of state property for his or her benefit and that of others. In his capacity as governor, he misrepresented public funds for reconstruction efforts and support to the civilian population and improperly awarded contracts and other State assets.  The sanction imposed consists of the freezing of assets and a travel ban.

 

More information:

Lupicinio International Law Firm

C/ Villanueva 29

28001 Madrid

T: +34 91 436 00 90

F: +34 91 587 24 99

info@lupicinio.com

 

^[1] Council Decision (CFSP) 2019/25 of 8 January 2019 amending and updating the list of persons, groups and entities to which Articles 2, 3 and 4 of Common Position 2001/931/CFSP on the application of specific measures to combat terrorism apply and repealing Decision (CFSP) 2018/1084. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/es/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32019D0025&from=en

^[2] U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council, Inc. 22 July of 2021. From The White House- “Biden-Harris Administration Measures On Cuba”https://www.cubatrade.org/blog/2021/7/22/from-the-white-house-biden-harris-administration-measures-on-cuba

[3] Brazil, Cuba, Mexico, Nicaragua, Venezuela Elections Impacting Democrat And Republican Strategies For Mid-Term, Presidential Elections In Florida And Other States; Brazil Consequential

July 12th, 2021. U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council, Inc. https://www.cubatrade.org/blog/2021/7/4/eph6ertttouzh7t1aee9dro3a75rfv