Date Time
Additions of Cuban Military-Owned Companies to Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List
Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) added three Cuban military-owned companies to its Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List (SDN List). All property and interests in property of these entities that are in the United States or in the possession or control of persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction continue to be blocked and must be reported to OFAC.
The companies are Grupo de Administración Empresarial SA (GAESA), FINCIMEX, and Kave Coffee S.A. GAESA is the Cuban military’s largest company, which controls large portions of Cuba’s economy for the military’s benefit. Cuban military-controlled FINCIMEX funnels remittances through channels that disproportionately benefit the Cuban military. Kave Coffee S.A., a coffee company domiciled in Havana and incorporated in Panama, is part of an international netw
Additions of Cuban Military-Owned Companies to the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List state.gov - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from state.gov Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
United States Rescinds Designation of Sudan as State Sponsor of Terrorism
Key Points
On December 14, 2020, the U.S. Department of State officially rescinded Sudan’s designation as an SST in light of Sudan’s actions to normalize relations with Israel and resolution of terrorism claims.
This action paves the way for the lifting of mandatory U.S. trade restrictions on business involving Sudan, the government of Sudan and Sudanese nationals that was based on Sudan’s previous SST listing.
Before embarking on any activity or transaction involving Sudan, companies should be diligent to assess the extent to which remaining federal and state restrictions, including state level divestment sanctions regarding Sudan, as well as contractual or other relevant restrictions regarding Sudan still in place, may affect new business opportunities.
[co-author: Stephanie Cheung]
INTRODUCTION
Following our recent Client Alert published in October 2020 on the release of the Section 5(a) Report under the Hong Kong Autonomy Act of 2020 (“
HKAA”), there have now been some further updates in relation to U.S. sanctions affecting parties in Hong Kong and China which we discuss below.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION IDENTIFIES FOUR ADDITIONAL CHINESE ENTITIES AS MILITARY COMPANIES
CCMC”). This list is required to be compiled and reported to the U.S. Congress. In addition to the companies already on the list from designations in June and August of this year, the four companies added in December are (i) high-tech state-owned enterprise group, China Construction Technology Co. Ltd. (CCTC); (ii) an engineering consulting business, China International Engineering Consulting Corp. (CIECC); (iii) China’s top chipmaker, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp. (SMIC); and (iv) China’s largest offshore oil and gas producer, China Natio
December 18, 2020
On December 14, 2020, the United States imposed sanctions on the Republic of Turkey’s Presidency of Defense Industries (“SSB”), the country’s defense procurement agency, and four senior officials at the agency, for knowingly engaging in a “significant transaction” with Rosoboronexport (“ROE”), Russia’s main arms export entity, in procuring the S-400 surface-to-air missile system. These measures were a long-time coming under Section 231 of the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (“CAATSA”) of 2017, the President has been
required to impose sanctions on any person determined to have knowingly “engage[d] in a significant transaction with a person that is part of, or operates for or on behalf of, the defense or intelligence sectors of the Government of the Russian Federation.” This includes ROE, and Turkey’s multi-billion dollar S-400 transaction with ROE has been public knowledge for at least three years. Indeed, in