U.S. INFORMS DFA OF SANCTIONS AGAINST RUSSIA 08 August 2014 – The Embassy of the United States of America in the Philippines informed the Department of Foreign Affairs of economic sanctions that the latter imposed on Russia beginning 29 July 2014. The sanctions were made in light of Russia’s “purported annexation of Crimea, and ongoing violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity breach its core obligations under international law and threaten international peace and stability.” These are as follows: • Imposition of targeted sectoral sanctions on three additional Russian banks under Executive Order 13662: Bank of Moscow, Russian Agricultural Bank, and VTB Bank OAO. US persons are prohibited from transacting in, providing financing for, or otherwise dealing in debt with a maturity for longer than 90 days or equity that is issued on or after 29 July 2014 (the sanctions’effective date) by, on behalf of, or for the benefit of Bank of Moscow, Russian Agricultural Bank, and VTB Bank OAO, and any subsidiaries owned 50 percent or more by them. These measures are the same as those applied to Gazprombank on 16 July 2014. • Designation of one Russian defense company under Executive Order 13661: United Shipbuilding Corporation. This company – and any subsidiaries owned 50 percent or more by it – it will face an asset freeze and a prohibition on doing business with US persons. This company was also added to the Department of Commerce Entity’s list which imposes a license requirement, with a presumption of denial, for the export, re-export or foreign transfer of items subject to the Export Administration Regulations. • Adoption of a policy of denial of export licenses for certain items for use in Russia’s energy sector that may be used for ecploration or production from deep water, Arctic offshore, or shale objects that have the potential to produce oil. This policy does not target or interfere with the current supply of energy from Russia or prevent Russian companies from selling oil and gas to the United States or any other country. But this policy does make it difficult for Russia to develop long-term, technically challenging, strategic energy projects. The U.S. also cautioned non-U.S. companies stating that they “could be subject to U.S. sanctions for providing material support to or acting on behalf od a sanctioned individual or entity.” Companies who wish to take advantage of business opportunities created by the withdrawal of cooperative businesses were warned that the U.S. “would have serious concerns with any company that takes such actions.” Philippine busineses dealing with Russian companies are advised to consult the U.S. Treasury Department’s website on a daily basis to ensure that the companies they transact with are not among those identified by the U.S. The list is updated daily and may be viewed at: treasury.gov/about/organizational-structure/offices/Pages/Office-of-Foreign-Assets-Control.aspx. END
Posted on: Fri, 08 Aug 2014 07:58:22 +0000