While the Joe Biden administration will likely pursue more multilateral sanctions than the Trump administration, industry should not expect the Office of Foreign Assets Control to reverse its yearslong trend of increased sanctions, a former OFAC official and law firms said.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned two entities involved in the “exportation of forced labor” from North Korea, according to a Nov. 19 press release. The designations target Mokran LLC, a Russian construction company, and Korea Cholsan General Trading Corporation, a North Korean company operating in Russia, for exporting forced labor to generate revenue for the North Korean government, OFAC said.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control renewed a general license authorizing transactions between certain companies and Petroleos de Venezuela, OFAC said Nov. 17. General License No. 8G, which replaces No. 8F (see 2004220009), authorizes transactions between PdVSA and Chevron, Halliburton, Schlumberger, Baker Hughes and Weatherford International, with certain restrictions, through 12:01 a.m. EDT June 3, 2021. The license was scheduled to expire Dec. 1.

Airbnb may have violated U.S. sanctions laws and submitted a voluntary self-disclosure to the Office of Foreign Assets Control in September, the company said in a Nov. 16 Securities and Exchange Commission filing. Airbnb said it began an internal review in 2019 and has been cooperating with OFAC “regarding certain user activity on our platform” that was “inconsistent with our policies” and U.S. sanctions laws. The company said those activities involved Ukraine's Crimea region, Cuba and certain OFAC specially designated nationals.

Western Union has not been able to find a workaround to new Treasury Department restrictions on Cuba (see 2010280027) and said it will soon not be able to process money transfers to the island, the company told customers Nov. 13. The company said it has “been working around the clock to explore every possible option to keep our services open between the U.S. and Cuba” but “we have not been able to find a solution in this limited timeframe.” The remittance restrictions, announced by Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control earlier this year (see 2009230029 and 2010230024), will take effect Nov. 27.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned four people and six companies that helped procure U.S.-origin electronics components and other “sensitive” goods for an Iranian military firm, the agency said Nov. 10. OFAC said the network of people and companies helped ship the items to Iran Communication Industries, which produces military communications systems, electronic warfare items, missile launchers and other goods for Iran.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned 17 Syrian and Lebanese people and entities for operating in Syria’s oil industry and supporting the Bashar al-Assad’s regime oil production network, according to a Nov. 9 press release. The sanctions target Syrian military officials, members of Syria’s Parliament, Syrian government entities and both Syrian and Lebanese people trying to “revive Syria’s deteriorating petroleum industry,” OFAC said.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned a member of Lebanon’s Parliament for corruption, the agency said Nov. 6. The designation targets Gibran Bassil, president of the Free Patriotic Movement political party. OFAC said Bassil has held several “high-level” positions in the Lebanese government and has been “marked by significant allegations of corruption.”

Two Iranian businessmen sanctioned by the U.S. said they were illegally targeted by the Office of Foreign Assets Control and asked the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California to vacate their designations. Behzad Ferdows and Mehrzad Ferdows, residents of Germany and Iran, said in a Nov. 5 lawsuit that OFAC violated “constitutional norms,” statutory requirements and failed to follow due process when the agency sanctioned both men in September.

Three U.S. companies said they may have violated U.S. sanctions or export controls related to overseas sales and illegally processed payments, according to their most recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The potential violations include disclosures of dealings with sanctioned businesses, including sales to Iran.