August 1, 2024

The Readbook is Kharon's weekly roundup of our published pieces, upcoming events, and the best-curated news feed on the intersection?of international security and global commerce. Subscribe to the email version.

/THIS WEEK ON THE KHARON BRIEF

US Targets Freight Forwarders Amid Sanctions Evasion

The U.S. government is stepping up its enforcement efforts to hold logistics companies, such as freight forwarders, accountable for their role in helping import sensitive items into Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. [Read more ]

/PARTNERSHIP ANNOUNCEMENT

Kharon is proud to announce its strategic partnership with NQC, a leader in supply chain sustainability and risk management solutions. Kharon’s data will be implemented on NQC’s SUPPLIERASSURANCE platform to offer organizations a scalable solution to address forced labor in global supply chains. [Learn More ]

/MEDIA ROUNDUP

SANCTIONS        

The EU made available in support of Ukraine the first payment of EUR 1.5 billion generated from immobilized Russian assets. [European Commission ]

A Russian billionaire’s estate manager agreed to forfeit more than GBP 750,000 to end a near two-year investigation by British police over sanctions dodging. [Bloomberg ]

A Netherlands-based gaming company has divested its former creator support platform after allegations it was used to violate international sanctions on Russia. [VentureBeat ]

A U.K.-sanctioned tanker has loaded oil from Russia’s Black Sea port of Novorossiysk and is sailing for Port Said, Egypt, with the voyage to reveal whether designated vessels can skirt Russia’s oil price cap. [Lloyd’s List ]

NATO has accused Beijing of being a “decisive enabler” of Moscow’s ongoing war against Ukraine. The case of a laser machine tool company, now sanctioned by the U.S., shows how China is helping Russia. [WaPo ]

The U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned five individuals and seven entities based in Iran, China, and Hong Kong that have facilitated the procurement of goods on behalf of subordinates of Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics. [U.S. Treasury ]The U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned two individuals and four companies that have facilitated weapons procurement for Ansarallah, commonly referred to as the Houthis. [U.S. Treasury ]

The EU added “The Base,” an organization of right-wing extremists involved in terrorist acts, to the EU Terrorist List. [European Council ]

The EU sanctioned nine individuals and one entity responsible for acts that constitute serious human rights violations and abuses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and for sustaining the armed conflict, instability, and insecurity in the Eastern DRC. [European Council ]

EU member countries continue to tolerate the rampant evasion of sanctions against Russia and Belarus, making it harder for front-line states to enforce the measures, the Latvian Foreign Minister said. [POLITICO ]

The U.S. is considering fresh sanctions on Venezuela following disputed results in the country's presidential election, with measures to be released if President Nicolas Maduro fails to comply with demands for greater transparency on the vote counting. [Reuters ]

The previous U.S. presidential administration was warned that sanctions on Venezuela could accelerate that country’s economic collapse and speed an exodus of millions of migrants to neighboring nations. [WaPo ]

COMPLIANCE + ENFORCEMENT        

FinCEN issued a notice to customers of financial institutions about reporting beneficial ownership information. [FinCEN ]

Seven banks shared customer data with the U.K. National Crime Agency in the largest project of its kind worldwide to tackle criminal gangs, money laundering, and "dirty money" flowing through the country. [Reuters ]?

The U.S. BIS published proposed rules seeking public comment on enhanced restrictions on exports, reexports, or support to military or intelligence end users and end uses in countries of concern. [U.S. BIS ]

The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced a USD 7.4 million settlement with a U.S.financial institution, on behalf of itself and its subsidiary, for 38 apparent violations of sanctions related to Ukraine and Russia. [U.S. Treasury ]

Italian tax police seized real estate assets and holdings worth around EUR 41 million from a Russian businessman who is under investigation in Ukraine for alleged corruption, fraud, and money laundering. [Reuters ]

A Singaporean shipping manager who aided a company in delivering more than USD 400,000 worth of alcohol and other drinks to North Korea was fined. [The Straits Times ]

Canada's FINTRAC issued an Operational Alert that addresses inherent tax evasion and money laundering vulnerabilities in the real estate sector. [FINTRAC ]

FINTRAC imposed an administrative monetary penalty on an independent wealth management firm for non-compliance with money laundering and terrorist financing regulations. [FINTRAC ]

German authorities arrested two Russian nationals suspected of participating in a financing network for the terrorist organization Islamic State. [German Government ]Three suspected members of Islamic State’s Afghan branch, Islamic State Khorasan, have been charged in Belgium with planning a terrorist attack. [Guardian ]?

A multinational aerospace group is facing a criminal investigation in the U.K. into potential violations of export control rules involving several of its U.K. entities. [Reuters ]

A citizen of Montenegro was extradited to the U.S. from Italy to face maritime narcotrafficking charges for conspiring to arrange multi-ton shipments of cocaine from South America to the Balkans and elsewhere. [U.S. Justice ]

Five individuals with ties to Mexico pleaded guilty to charges related to a conspiracy to source firearms and explosives from the U.S. and deliver them to organized crime syndicates in Mexico. [U.S. Justice ]

Two individuals were charged with conspiring to export firearms, night vision devices, laser sights, and other equipment from the U.S. to Colombia, without obtaining the required export licenses. [U.S. Justice ]

The Biden administration backed proposals to permanently stiffen penalties on synthetic drug traffickers, monitor machines used to make fentanyl pills, and close a loophole that allows criminal groups to easily ship drugs in packages. [WaPo ]

The U.S. Departments of Justice and Homeland Security published fact sheets on actions that have been taken to disrupt the global fentanyl supply chain over the past several years. [U.S. Justice ] [U.S. Homeland Security ]

The U.K. implemented a new search function for the U.K. Sanctions List that will enable users to search for designated persons more effectively without downloading the list in its entirety. [U.K. Government ]

TRADE CONTROLS + SUPPLY CHAIN        

The Biden administration plans to unveil a new rule next month that will expand U.S. powers to stop exports of semiconductor manufacturing equipment from some foreign countries to Chinese chipmakers. [Reuters ]

HUMAN RIGHTS        

Multiple U.S. law enforcement agencies investigated allegations of “financial crimes and labor exploitation” at a Chinese-owned automotive glass manufacturing facility in Dayton, Ohio. [Dayton Daily News ]

CRYPTO + CYBER        

Russia is moving to regulate the use of cryptocurrencies, as companies wrestle with increasing difficulties in foreign payments under the threat of U.S. sanctions over the war in Ukraine. [Bloomberg ]

Singapore's government noted an increasing use of cryptocurrencies in terrorist financing, even though cash and other informal value transfer systems remain the predominant means for financial transactions. [CoinDesk ]