The State Department’s Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs released Sept. 28 a fact sheet detailing the expanded economic sanctions against Iran set forth by the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act of 2012, which President Obama signed into law Aug. 10. The fact sheet states that this law provides for sanctions on activities related to Iran’s energy and financial sectors, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, support for terrorism and human rights abuses. The law also amends portions of the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996, the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability and Divestment Act of 2010 and section 1245 of the FY 2012 National Defense Authorization Act in an effort to “greatly increase the pressure on Iran to comply with its full range of international nuclear obligations and engage in constructive negotiations with the international community.”
New categories of sanctionable commercial activities with Iran including knowingly doing the following:
• participating in a joint venture established on or after Jan. 1, 2002, with respect to the development of petroleum resources outside of Iran if the government of Iran is a substantial partner or investor in the joint venture or if Iran could receive technological knowledge or equipment not previously available to it that could directly and significantly contribute to the enhancement of its ability to develop its petroleum resources
• owning, operating, controlling or insuring a vessel that on or after 90 days from the law’s enactment was used to transport crude oil from Iran to another country (this does not apply to vessels used to transport crude oil from Iran to a country given a “significant reduction” exception under section 1245 of the NDAA)
• owning, operating or controlling a vessel that on or after 90 days from enactment is used in a manner that conceals the Iranian origin of crude oil or refined petroleum products transported on the vessel, including by permitting the vessel’s operator to suspend the operation of the vessel’s satellite tracking device or obscuring the ownership, operation or control of the vessel
• providing underwriting services, insurance or reinsurance on or after enactment for the National Iranian Oil Company, the National Iranian Tanker Company or a successor entity to either
• purchasing, subscribing to or facilitating the issuance of sovereign debt of the government of Iran or debt of any entity owned or controlled by the government of Iran, including bonds, issued on or after enactment
State was previously required to impose at least three out of nine available sanctions once it determined that sanctionable activity had occurred. The new law expands the list of potential sanctions to include prohibitions on the following activities and requires State to impose at least five.
- export assistance from the Export-Import Bank of the United States
- licenses for export of U.S. military, dual use or nuclear-related goods or technology
- private U.S. bank loans exceeding $10 million in any 12-month period
- if the sanctioned person is a financial institution, designation as a primary dealer in U.S. government debt instruments or service as a repository of USG funds
- USG procurement contracts
- foreign exchange transactions subject to U.S. jurisdiction
- financial transactions subject to U.S. jurisdiction
- transactions with respect to property and interests in property subject to U.S. jurisdiction
- imports into the United States from the sanctioned person
- investment in equity or debt of the sanctioned person
- visas for corporate officers of sanctioned entities
The new law also requires State to impose at least five of these sanctions on persons that:
• materially assist, sponsor or provide financial, material or technological support for, or goods or services in support of, or engage in significant transactions with, the Iran Republican Guard Corps or its officials, agents or affiliates;
• engage in significant transactions with a person subject to, or a person acting on behalf of or at the direction of a person subject to, financial sanctions pursuant to an Iran-related U.N. Security Council resolution;
• export, transfer, permit or otherwise facilitate the transshipment of any goods, services, technology or other items to any other person while the person knew or should have known that such shipment would likely result in another person exporting, transferring, transshipping or otherwise providing the goods, services, technology or other items to Iran and that the items would contribute materially to the ability of Iran to acquire or develop chemical, biological or nuclear weapons or related technologies or destabilizing numbers and types of advanced conventional weapons; or
• participate in a joint venture established on or after Feb. 2, 2012, with the government of Iran, an entity incorporated in Iran or subject to the jurisdiction of the government of Iran, or a person acting on behalf of or at the direction of the government or Iran or such an entity that involves any activity relating to the mining, production or transportation of uranium.
Source: STR Trade Report
