Welcome to European Tribune. It's gone a bit quiet around here these days, but it's still going.
Display:
US Treasury | Treasury Targets Additional Facilitators of Russia's Aggression in Ukraine, 15 Sep central booking
Today, as part of its continued response to Russia's HORRIFIC war of aggression against Ukraine, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated 22 individuals and 2 entities, including   multiple individuals who have furthered the Government of the Russian Federation's (GoR) objectives in Ukraine, both prior to and during Russia's further invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Also included among those being designated is Task Force Rusich, a neo-Nazi < eyebrow > paramilitary group that has participated in combat alongside Russia's military in Ukraine, as well as two of its senior leaders.

Today's action is being taken in coordination with those taken by the U.S. Department of Commerce, which is imposing additional export control measures to further align with partners and allies, as well as by the U.S. Department of State, which is targeting Russia's defense and high-technology industries, as well as proxy authorities. ...

FURTHER ISOLATING RUSSIA'S FINANCIAL SYSTEM AND COUNTERING EVASION
In response to Russia's February 2022 further invasion of Ukraine, the United States and an international coalition of allies and partners took swift action to substantially sever Russia's access to the world's financial infrastructure. In response, Russia has scrambled to find new ways to process payments and conduct transactions. Directly and indirectly, Russia's financial technocrats have supported the Kremlin's unprovoked war. Today's designations target those efforts. OFAC is also publishing a Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) to provide additional guidance on the heightened risk of facilitating Russia's efforts to evade sanctions through the ["]expanded use["] of the National Payment Card System (NSPK) or the Mir National Payment System, given the broad sanctions imposed on Russia's financial system this year.
[...]
PROHIBITION ON QUANTUM COMPUTING SERVICES AND EXPANSION OF SANCTIONS AUTHORITIES
Treasury is also taking additional action to cut off Russia's access to a key service from U.S. companies. Today, OFAC issued a determination pursuant to E.O. 14071 prohibiting the exportation, re[-]exportation, sale, or supply, directly or indirectly [CHIP 4 Indo-Pac supply chain?], from the United States, or by a United States person, wherever located, of quantum computing services to any person located in the Russian Federation.
[...]
In parallel with this action, OFAC has identified the quantum computing sector < eyebrow > of the Russian Federation economy pursuant to E.O. 14024. This determination allows for sanctions to be imposed on any individual or entity determined to operate or have operated in this sector of the Russian Federation economy and, thereby, expands the United States' ability to swiftly impose additional economic costs on Russia for its WAR OF CHOICE in Ukraine....
KIRBY-CONTENT CLOAKING DEVICE: "China's 'questions and concerns' over Ukraine"
by Cat on Thu Sep 15th, 2022 at 11:02:12 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Daily Sabah | Russia hides details, but says Mir bank cards still work in Türkiye, 22 Sep
Russia's central bank vowed last week to expand the number of countries that accept its Mir cards, despite new U.S. sanctions targeting people and entities accused of helping Moscow skirt financial sanctions.

Denizbank and İşbank, two private lenders in Türkiye, a leading destination for Russian travelers < wipes tears >, suspended the use of Mir after Washington included NSPK head Vladimir Komlev in its sanctions program, imposed in response to Russia's military campaign in Ukraine.

But Komlev told a banking forum in Kazan: "We are not considering the option of completely abandoning the use of Mir cards abroad ... The level of concern and noise ... is quite over the top."

< wipe tears >
"The Americans have always said that sanctions apply to those areas of financial activity where the dollar is involved. The Mir card does not use the dollar and it is does not fall under U.S. sanctions policy by any criteria.

"The U.S. has not even imposed sanctions on Mir cards ... but we see that countries friendly to us are abandoning this instrument that we were planning to develop," [VTB Bank CEO Andrei Kostin]said, referring to Türkiye, Vietnam[,] and Kazakhstan.

Beyond Türkiye, the cards are currently only accepted in a few countries such as Cuba, South Korea, Vietnam[,] and a handful of former Soviet republics.

by Cat on Thu Sep 22nd, 2022 at 07:43:50 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Display:

Occasional Series