By Abraham Shanedling

 

A recent Wall Street Journal article reports on a “steady flow” of Western executives to Iran in light of the temporary sanctions relief granted to Iran as part of November’s interim deal.

Even though the Obama Administration has stressed that such relief is limited to only a handful of industries, this hasn’t stopped companies such as telecommunications provider Orange or French drug maker Sanofi Aventis SA from ending corporate representatives on “exploratory visits” to Iran.

The WSJ article describes Western executives organizing training seminars and hosting meetings with Iranian ministers all with an eye toward laying business groundwork should sanctions ease up even more.

The full story can be found here.

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April 03, 2014

By Abraham Shanedling

 

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said that Hungary is against the European Union imposing sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Crimea.

 

In an interview with Vilaggazdasag newspaper, Orban said that economic sanctions are “not in the interests of either Europe, or much less Hungary.”

 

The comments are not surprising given that Russia is Hungary’s largest trading partner, with Hungary relying on Russia for the vast majority of its natural gas. Hungary also recently signed a 10 billion Europe deal with Russia to expand Hungary’s nuclear plant.

 

Reuters has more on the story.

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April 02, 2014

By Abraham Shanedling

 

The World Bank has indicated that Russia’s economy could drop by 1.8 percent if the standoff in Ukraine continues and the resulting U.S. and European sanctions stay in place or intensify.

 

Although Russian leaders in the Kremlin have downplayed the impact of the sanctions, economists say that investors have pulled about $70 billion from Russia’s economy since the crisis began. Prices for food and imported items have already risen, and some Russians are reportedly having problems tapping into funds at banks designated by U.S. and European sanctions.

 

Russia’s already weak economy plus the threat of more sanctions even prompted Standard an Poor’s rating agency to change its rating of the situation from “stable” to “negative.”

Voice of America has more on the story.

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April 01, 2014

By Abraham Shanedling

Russian President Valdimir Putin meets with
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in January 2014.
(Photo courtesy of The Iran Project)

A sanctions tit-for-tat battle is quickly emerging between Moscow and the Western powers in light of Russia’s annexation of the Crimean Peninsula.

So far the United States and the European Union have implemented asset freezes and visa restrictions against 28 Russian and Ukrainian officials, including several close advisers to Russian President Vladimir Putin, accused of involvement in the seizure of Crimea.

Moments after President Obama announced expanded sanctions on Russian financial services, energy, mining and engineering sectors, Putin hit back with his own round of sanctions, targeting certain White House officials and Members of Congress.

Most of the named U.S. officials, now blocked from entering Russia, have not expressed severe concern. “I guess that means my spring break in Siberia is off, my Gazprom stock is lost, and my secret bank account in Moscow is frozen,” said Senator John McCain, who had recently returned from a trip to Kiev and was included on Putin’s list.

Members of Congress may not be taking the Kremlin’s response seriously right now. But this all may change.

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March 26, 2014

By Abraham Shanedling

The U.N. security council has authorized sanctions against anyone in Yemen who obstructs the country’s political transition or commits human rights violations, though the sanctions does not include a black list of specific individuals.

The sanctions resolution, announced Feb. 26, was drafted by the British and was adopted unanimously. It delegates to a newly created U.N. sanctions committee for Yemen the ability to impose asset freezes and bans on specific individuals. The committee will be comprise of all 15 U.N. Security Council members.

For more, take a look at Reuters. 

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March 06, 2014

By Abraham Shanedling

This Wednesday, March 5 from 1-2 p.m., Georgetown Law’s National Security Law Society is hosting a brown-bag lunch discussion on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), looking at bribery, transparency, and accountability in international business. The panel will feature James Kouikous, Senior Deputy Chief of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Fraud Secction, and Michael Diamant, a partner at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP.

The event will take place in McDonough Hall, Room 437. For questions, contact gulcnsls@gmail.com.

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March 04, 2014

By Abraham Shanedling

As the situation in the Crimea escalates, Members of Congress are pushing for targeted sanctions against Russia and an aid package to Ukraine.

The effort comes after President Obama said Russia would face “costs” for intervening in Ukraine. Sen. Bob Corker, the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued a statement saying that “Congress will consider targeted sanctions against Russian persons and entities that undermine the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.”

Sen. Corker has been echoed by Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY), the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, who called for “a robust international economic assistance package” for Ukraine.

Read more at USA Today.

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March 03, 2014

By Abraham Shanedling

Concerned about the escalating situation in Central African Republic, the U.S. Secretary of State has warned that the United States is prepared to impose targeted sanctions against those responsible for the religious violence, according to Reuters. 

Last week, there were 30 deaths in just three days, according to a statement by the International Committee of the Red Cross. Nearly one million people have already been displaced by fighting that began when Muslim Seleka rebels took power in the majority Christian country.

Secretary of State John Kerry said in a statement that the United States may impose sanctions against past and present leaders who “pursue their own selfish ends by abetting or encouraging the violence.”

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February 05, 2014

By Abraham Shanedling

An effort to impose additional sanctions on Iran’s nuclear program has likely stalled in Congress amid pressure from President Obama, who threatened to veto the measure, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who refused to put the bill to a vote.

The bipartisan bill, which has 58 cosponsors, including 15 Democrats, would implement sanctions on Iran unless it agrees to halt all of its uranium enrichment. However, the White House has been openly against the move, warning that it could thwart the current deal in place with Iran and the P5+1.

Instead members of the House and Senate are considering a weaker non-binding resolution expressing concern about Iran’s nuclear ambitions and calling for negotiators to set stricter conditions on the negotiations.

On Tuesday, February 4, at 10 a.m., the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations is hosting a hearing on the current negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program. Set to testify is Wendy Sherman of the Department of State; David Cohen of Department of Treasury; David Albright of the Institute for Science and International Security; and Mark Dubowitz of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

Head to Reuters for more on the issue. 

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February 03, 2014

By Abraham Shanedling

The ABA Section of International Law Export Controls and Economic Sanctions Committee is hosting a panel discussion on the recently announced agreement between the P5+1 and Iran, including a discussion of the implementation steps that began on January 20. The event will be on Thursday, February 6, at 12:30 p.m.

The panel will take place at the Washington, D.C., office of Baker & McKenzie LLP (815 Connecticut Avenue, NW). Registration is free for in-person attendance.

This discussion will include an overview of the specific sanctions suspensions that have taken place or are planned and the U.S. and international sanctions that remain in force.  An overview of the expected implementation of the Joint Plan of Action by the European Union will be provided by Anahita Thoms, a Principal Associate at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, based in New York and Berlin.

Speakers:

• Peter Harrell, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Counter Threat Finance and Sanctions, US Department of State
• Eytan Fisch, Assistant Director for Policy, Office of Foreign Assets Control, US Department of the Treasury
• Anahita Thoms, Principal Associate, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer US LLP

Moderators:

• Alexandre Lamy, Associate, Baker & McKenzie LLP 

• Glen Kelley, Counsel, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer US LLP

For more information and to register click here.

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February 01, 2014

By Abraham Shanedling

The United States and five other world powers announced late Saturday night that they had reached an agreement with Iran that would temporarily freeze much of Iran’s nuclear program in return for $6 to $7 billion in sanctions relief.

The full text of the agreement, which is to last six months, can be found here.

Although the agreement requires Iran to stop enriching uranium beyond 5 percent, the deal does not require Iran to completely cease enrichment, including to low levels of 3.5 percent or to dismantle any of its existing centrifuges.

Appearing on live television shortly after the announcement of the deal, President Obama said the agreement includes "substantial limitations that will help prevent Iran from creating a nuclear weapon."

A White House statement called the nuclear agreement an "initial, six-month step," and noted that the accord includes limits on Iran's ability to "produce weapons-grad plutonium" from its heavy water reactor in Arak.

On Sunday however, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has consistently expressed his distrust with Iran, called the agreement a "historic mistake," likening the agreement to that reached with North Korea in 2005.

Meanwhile, with the agreement in place, Congressional efforts to ratchet up sanctions will now be on pause at least for the six-month window.

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November 24, 2013

By Abraham Shanedling

The U.S. Department of State formally added Nigerian Islamist militant groups Boko Haram and its splinter group, Ansaru, as “Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists” last week.

Boko Haram, which has ties to al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, is responsible for thousands of deaths in northeast and central Nigeria over the last several years, including a 2011 suicide bombing of the United Nations building in Abuja, the State Department said in a statement. Also operating in Nigeria, Ansaru was responsible for the 2013 kidnapping and execution of seven international construction workers and various attacks on Nigerian and Western targets.

The designations of Boko Haram and Ansaru under the Immigration and Nationalization Act and Executive Order 13224 now prohibit any material support to the groups and calls for the freezing of all of the organizations’ assets in the United States. Read more on the impact here.

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November 19, 2013

By Abraham Shanedling

In advance of this week’s follow-up round of nuclear talks in Geneva, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy is hosting a policy forum on Tuesday, Nov. 19, to discuss the strategic, political, and technical aspects of a proposed agreement with Iran.

The discussion will feature Dennis Ross, Olli Heinonen, and Robert Satloff.

Dennis Ross is counselor at The Washington Institute and former senior Middle East adviser to President Barack Obama.

Olli Heinonen is a senior fellow with the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University and a former deputy director-general for safeguards at the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Robert Satloff is executive director of The Washington Institute.

More on how to RSVP or watch the event via webcast can be found here.

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November 18, 2013

By Abraham Shanedling

As the White House claims it is nearing a diplomatic deal with Iran over its nuclear program, the U.S. Senate remains split on whether to impose more sanctions on the Islamic republic.

On Friday, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein said she will strongly oppose any new sanctions on Iran. However senators from both parties, including Foreign Relations Chairman Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), and Senator Mark Kirk (R-IL), have expressed support for imposing tighter restrictions on the Iranian regime.

The administration meanwhile has intensely lobbied against new sanctions, claiming they could hinder the negotiating strategy and lead the U.S. on a “march to war.”

The Senate is expected to vote this week.

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November 17, 2013

 Photo courtesy of the U.S. State Department. 

By Abraham Shanedling

Secretary of State John Kerry met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Wednesday in Rome, seeking to assure Israel of the Obama administration’s resolve in negotiating with Iran.

However, as The New York Times reported, Kerry’s comments did little to persuade Netanyahu, who demanded that any deal with Iran must include a ban on uranium-enriching centrifuges and the dismantling of a plutonium heavy water plant in Arak.

“We will pursue a diplomatic initiative with eyes wide open,” Kerry told reporters, adding that Iran would be held to the same standards as other states if it was to prove its nuclear program is peaceful.

Netanyahu stressed to Kerry that Iran’s nuclear program poses an existential threat to Israel. “They should get rid of the amassed fissile material, and they shouldn’t have underground nuclear facilities,” Netanyahu told reporters.

The next round of nuclear negotiations between Iran and the P5+1 are scheduled for early next month in Geneva.

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October 24, 2013

By Abraham Shanedling

The U.S. Department of Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced Tuesday that it had assessed $1.5 million penalty against a United Arab Emirates-based investment company for violating the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations.

OFAC claims that from September 2009 to February 2010, Alma Investment LLC, which serves as a general trading company, originated at least six electronic fund transfers through U.S.-based financial institutions for the benefit of individuals and entities in Iran. Because Alma did not voluntary disclose such activity, it constituted a violation of OFAC’s ban on exporting services, directly or indirectly, from the United States to Iran or the government of Iran.

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October 23, 2013

By Abraham Shanedling

An Iranian lawmaker told Iran's state-run news website Press TV that the closure of the Fordow nuclear facility is not on the agenda of Iranian negotiators during upcoming talks with world powers in Geneva.

The official, Mohammad Hossein Asafari, a member of Iran’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, told the Iranian news agency that Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator Abbas Araqchi has told Western powers that Tehran will not stop uranium enrichment and will not close the Fordow plant.

Asafari was quoted as saying that the decision on the acceptance of the Additional Protocol, which allows the International Atomic Agency to inspect nuclear plants, is solely up to the Majlis (the Iranian parliament).

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Bejamin Netanyahu, who is meeting with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Rome on Wednesday, is expected to caution against easing Western sanctions on Iran.

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October 22, 2013

Under Secretary for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman leads the U.S. delegation for the P5+1 talks with Iran in Geneva, Switzerland, on October 15, 2013. Also pictured in the photo are E.U. High Representative Catherine Ashton and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif. Photo courtesy of the U.S. State Department.  

By Abraham Shanedling

Last week, Iran and six world powers concluded two days of talks about Tehran’s nuclear program—the first formal negotiations between Iran and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council since the Iranian President Hassan Rouhani took office in August.

Despite a lack of details about the discussions, Iran’s foreign minister and the European Union’s foreign policy chief, issued a rare joint statement following the meetings, calling the talks “substantive and forward looking.” Further discussions are scheduled in Geneva for November 7 and 8. However, government officials and nuclear experts among the United States and its allies remain sharply divided on whether the negotiations represent a positive shift in relations with Tehran warranting “cautious optimism” or whether the world community should increase pressure on the regime to prevent Iran from using yet another round of negotiations as a delay tactic while the country strengthens critical nuclear capabilities.

Now that the government shutdown/debt-ceiling “debate” has been punted until next year, Iran sanctions legislation will likely resurface as a key issue in Congress. Appearing two weeks ago before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Wendy Sherman, the chief U.S. negotiator in Geneva, urged Congress to delay imposing stringent new Iran sanctions legislation until after the negotiations in Switzerland. The bill, which passed overwhelmingly (400-200) in the House in July and is now pending in the Senate, aims to cut Iran’s oil exports by another million barrels per day over the course of a year, decreasing the country’s oil exports to near nothing.

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October 17, 2013

By Abraham Shanedling

On Tuesday, China posted a list of restricted goods for export to North Korea, including military-like hardware and chemical substance as part of international sanctions against Pyongyang’s nuclear program.

As the New York Times reported, the list was released two weeks after new satellite images revealed that North Korea may be resuming plutonium production at its reconstructed nuclear reactor at Yongbyn.

Items included on the 236-page list, released Tuesday by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, were labeled “dual-use technologies” because they can be used for both civilian and military applications.

VOA News also has more on the story.

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September 25, 2013

By Abraham Shanedling

The U.S. Department of Treasury announced Tuesday the designation of six companies and five individuals linked to Los Gueros, a Mexican drug-trafficking organization.

The individuals designated included family members and associates of Los Gueros’ leaders. The designated businesses are owned or controlled by the organization and are suspected of being used by the group to launder their illicit proceeds. These companies include a tequila maker and its two parent companies, according to the Treasury Department.

Los Gueros, based in Guadelajara, Mexico, is responsible for transporting multi-ton quantities of narcotics into the United States, and hid its ownership interest in companies and properties for years by using aliases, the Treasury Department said in its statement.

The Treasury Department had previously placed Los Gueros and its four leaders under Kingpin Act sanctions in February 2011.

Read more about this at the Wall Street Journal.

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September 25, 2013