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On May 15, 2020, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) of the U.S. Department of Commerce announced an expansion of General Prohibition No. 3 of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to restrict Huawei’s access to semiconductor designs and chipsets that are direct products of certain…
Continue Reading U.S. Government Tightens Export Control of Direct Products of U.S. Technologies to Huawei and Dual-Use Items to China, Russia, and Venezuela

On February 18, 2020, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) imposed blocking sanctions pursuant to Executive Order (“E.O.”) 13850 against Rosneft Trading, S.A. (“RTSA”) and its president and board chairman, Didier Casimiro.  According to the press release announcing the designation,…
Continue Reading OFAC Targets Russian Support for Maduro Regime with New Sanctions Designations

On October 23, 2019, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) acting at the direction of President Trump and in consultation with the State Department, lifted sanctions on three Turkish government ministers and two Turkish government ministries and removed them from the List of Specially Designated…
Continue Reading OFAC Lifts Short-Lived Turkey Sanctions

On October 14, 2019, President Trump issued an Executive order authorizing sanctions targeting the Turkish government in connection with its military operations in northern Syria. The U.S. government also announced a 50% tariff on imports of steel from Turkey and cancellation of trade agreement negotiations.

The initial sanctions announced by…
Continue Reading Davis Polk Client Memorandum: United States Sanctions Turkish Government over Syrian Incursion

In response to what Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin called “Iran’s brazen attack against Saudi Arabia,” and following President Trump’s tweet ordering Treasury to “substantially increase Sanctions on the country of Iran,” today the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed additional sanctions on the Central Bank of Iran…
Continue Reading U.S. Imposes Additional Sanctions on Central Bank of Iran

In the latest development in the complex and evolving sanctions targeting the Government of Venezuela, on September 9, 2019, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) issued General License (“GL”) 34,  The new GL authorizes transactions involving certain individuals that would otherwise be prohibited…
Continue Reading New General License Reinforces Broad Scope of Sanctions Against the Government of Venezuela

Financial services regulatory reform continues to evolve in 2019.  As we observe the changing landscape, here is the Fall Focus Edition of our reference tool, which provides context and summarizes current developments across a range of key regulatory areas, agencies and actors.  We will continue to track these issues and…
Continue Reading Davis Polk Financial Services Regulatory Reform Tool—Fall Focus Edition

The Department of Commerce added 46 more non-U.S. affiliates of Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. to the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) Entity List, joining Huawei and 68 of its non-U.S. subsidiaries that were put on the list in May.  The Commerce Department also extended a temporary general license permitting…
Continue Reading Davis Polk Client Memorandum: Commerce Department Extends Huawei General License, Adds More Huawei Affiliates to Entity List

Late on the evening of August 5, 2019, President Trump issued a new Executive order imposing blocking sanctions on the Government of Venezuela (“GoV”).  The order builds on prior limited sanctions imposed on the GoV, as well as blocking sanctions imposed on certain GoV agencies and state-owned companies…
Continue Reading Davis Polk Client Memorandum: United States Imposes Blocking Sanctions on the Government of Venezuela

On August 3, 2019, the U.S. Department of State and the Department of the Treasury announced a second round of sanctions on the Russian Federation pursuant to the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control and Warfare Elimination Act of 1991 (CBW Act) in response to Russia’s involvement in a…
Continue Reading Davis Polk Client Memorandum: Second Round of Sanctions on the Russian Federation under Chemical and Biological Weapons Control and Warfare Elimination Act