Sanctions on CrossGov.com

CRS Report on Israel, 2026 Elections and Government Formation

Tue, 03 Nov 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Government Accountability Office report examined changes to Israel’s government following the October 27, 2026, Knesset elections. These changes could affect the country’s future direction and relations with the United States. The Likud party won the most seats, but neither bloc had a clear majority to form a government.

Uncertainty about election results could lead to a power-sharing arrangement. Netanyahu could use renewed U.S.-Israel military action against Iran to pressure rivals into a unity government. Eisenkot’s bloc had influence in power-sharing talks due to potential legislation limiting Netanyahu’s time as prime minister after another election. Before the election, Eisenkot rejected a deal allowing Netanyahu to remain prime minister. The parties in Eisenkot’s bloc considered partnering with the Arab-led Ra’am party for a minority government. Eisenkot reportedly required Ra’am to recognize Hamas as a terrorist organization.

Trump Executive Order 14436 on Implementing the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026

Fri, 30 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Executive Order 14436, signed by the President on September 18, 2026, implements sanctions against foreign persons and restrictions with respect to persons from Russia and other countries. The order increases duties on goods imported into the U.S. from these nations, except as waived under certain conditions, in response to national interests identified by the President.

Background

The Graham Act, signed into law on September 18, 2026, allows the President to waive certain sanctions, restrictions, and duties imposed by the act. Section 115 of the Graham Act permits the President to waive these provisions if they are deemed in the national interest after receiving a written certification from Congress explaining why such a waiver is necessary. In accordance with this authority, the President has waived the application of these measures provided for in the Graham Act and submitted a certification to Congress that the issuance of this waiver serves the nation’s interests.

OFAC Sanctions Rwandan Defense Ministry Over M23 and 11 Facilitators of North Korean IT Worker Fraud

Thu, 29 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control added 13 names to the SDN list on October 28 in two separate actions. Ten people and one company tied to North Korea’s overseas IT worker schemes were designated. So were Rwanda’s Ministry of Defence and a Rwandan savings society that pays for the army backing the M23 rebels in eastern Congo.

The two cases have nothing in common on the ground. What links them is the tool. Both rest on executive orders, both block any property under US jurisdiction, and both came out of Treasury on the same afternoon without a vote in Congress.

Treasury Sanctions a Greek Law Firm Behind Iran Shadow Fleet Ships as FinCEN Issues Its First Subpoena to a European Bank

Wed, 28 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Treasury Department sanctioned a Greek and Panamanian law firm on October 21, 2026, for registering the shipping companies behind Iran’s shadow fleet. The same day it disclosed that FinCEN had used its Bank Secrecy Act subpoena power for the first time to dig into a Greek bank’s possible ties to Iran.

Both moves are part of Operation Economic Outcast, the campaign Treasury launched on August 24 to cut Iran off from the financial system. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent put the message bluntly: “if you are supporting the Iranian regime, we will find you and sanction you.”

OFAC Hits Iran Offshore Banks, a Cartel del Noreste Racetrack and Chinese Firms Tied to Google Trade Secret Theft in One Week

Tue, 20 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control packed a wide spread of actions into October 13 to 19: Iranian offshore banks, a Mexican cartel’s racetrack, a Bank of America settlement and a fresh use of a 2023 law against trade secret theft.

Together they show how many separate legal authorities Washington now runs at once. Every designation below rests on an executive order or an existing statute. None needed a vote.

Russian Sanctions Relief Exposes a Collision Between Energy Policy and Congressional Intent

Mon, 19 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

President Donald Trump’s decision to waive key new restrictions on Russia has turned a dispute over diesel supplies into a broader confrontation over how American foreign policy is made. Congress approved legislation intended to increase pressure on Moscow, and Trump signed it last month. He has now waived important sanctions and tariff provisions before their implementation, while separately pursuing additional Russian diesel supplies. The backlash crosses party lines because the reversal raises an uncomfortable question: how much practical force does a congressional sanctions policy retain when the executive immediately chooses to suspend its central measures?

McConnell Joins Senators Demanding Trump Rescind the Russian Diesel License as the Graham Act Deadline Nears

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

On October 13 a bipartisan group of senators wrote to the President demanding that he withdraw from his October 9 deal with Vladimir Putin, rescind Treasury’s General License 135 allowing Russian diesel imports, and use the new Russia sanctions law against Moscow and its backers, “especially China.” Signers include Republicans Mitch McConnell, Thom Tillis, Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski, and Democrats Richard Blumenthal, Jeanne Shaheen, Dick Durbin, Sheldon Whitehouse, Jack Reed and Chris Coons.

Treasury Fines Bank of America More Than $1.2 Billion for Willful Money Laundering and Sanctions Violations, a Record for the OCC

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Treasury Department announced on October 13 what it called record enforcement actions against Bank of America, totaling more than $1.21 billion. The bank admitted it willfully violated the Bank Secrecy Act, the main US anti-money-laundering law.

The penalties come from three Treasury units. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) assessed $1.2 billion. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which supervises national banks, imposed a $750 million civil penalty, its largest ever. The Office of Foreign Assets Control settled 475 apparent sanctions violations for $11.6 million. The three figures add to more than the headline total, which suggests some are credited against each other; Treasury’s release gives the combined figure as more than $1.21 billion.

EU Adopts Its 22nd Russia Sanctions Package With About 1,600 Listings in the Week Washington Loosened Its Own

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

On October 12 EU foreign ministers meeting in Luxembourg formally adopted the bloc’s 22nd package of Russia sanctions. It adds about 1,600 individuals and entities, the largest single expansion since the full-scale invasion in 2022. “EU Foreign Ministers just adopted nearly 1,600 new sanctions listings targeting Russia’s military-industrial complex,” the EU’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, wrote.

Kallas said more than half the listings are tied to ballistic missile production, with the aim of making Russia’s weapons output “significantly harder, slower and more expensive.” Some listings extend existing measures rather than adding new targets. They take effect on publication in the EU’s Official Journal. EU ambassadors had cleared the package on October 7 and 8, as covered in our earlier sanctions post.

Graham Act Tariff Deadline Is Days Away With No Country List, Rates or Waiver Published

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act, signed on September 18, says the President “shall” raise duties on “all goods” from covered countries “to a rate of up to 100 percent ad valorem” within 30 days of enactment. That deadline falls around October 18 to 19. As of October 12, the White House, USTR and Treasury had published no list of countries, no rates and no waiver.

The law also requires a written justification to six congressional committees at least ten days before any duty takes effect, which pointed to about October 8. Whether one was sent privately hasn’t been disclosed.

Rubio Sanctions the Entire International Criminal Court as Washington and 28 Allies Blame Iran for the RAF Fairford Plot

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has imposed sanctions on the International Criminal Court as an institution. The order blocks ICC property under US jurisdiction and bars US persons from dealing with the court, with Treasury licenses allowing six months to wind down existing transactions. Earlier US sanctions targeted individual judges and prosecutors. This one targets the court itself.

“America never joined the court. We don’t need it. And we don’t want it,” Rubio said. “We will ban transactions with this rogue court, cutting off their resources and crippling its ability to operate.” The ICC called it “an attempt to obstruct justice” and “an assault on the rule of law.”

Seven Senators Say Trump's Russian Diesel License Breaks the 2022 Import Ban, and Bessent Says They're Wrong

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

On October 11 seven senators from both parties told the administration to reverse its decision to let Russian diesel into the US. Republicans Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Thom Tillis and John Curtis signed, with Democrats Jeanne Shaheen, Richard Blumenthal and Ron Wyden. “Congress explicitly banned Russian energy imports in 2022,” their statement said. “The Administration must immediately reverse course.”

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent answered on Fox the same day: “anyone in Congress who says whether it’s an old bill or the current Lindsey Graham bill prohibits us from doing it is wrong.”

Trump's Animosity Toward Ukraine Rewards Putin: From the Oval Office Ambush to a Russian Diesel Deal

Sun, 11 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

I don’t think the US owes Ukraine an open checkbook. Europe should carry most of the cost of a war on its own continent, and it now does. A President who pushed allies to pay more, demanded accountability for every weapon and pressed both sides toward a ceasefire would be doing his job.

Then there’s what this President has actually done. Over 20 months he has treated the country that was invaded as the problem, and the country that invaded it as a partner in waiting.

The Graham Russia Sanctions Act Takes Effect on October 19 as Trump Strikes a Diesel Deal With Putin

Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

On September 18 the President signed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026. It passed the Senate 86 to 11 and the House 262 to 159. Its main provisions take effect on October 19.

The law lets the President impose tariffs of up to 500% on Russian goods, and of up to 100% on the five largest buyers of Russian oil or gas, or the five biggest helpers in evading sanctions. It requires sanctions on Sberbank, VTB and Gazprombank, bans trading in some Russian securities, and adds sanctions on Rosatom, the state nuclear company, from 2028. Lifting the Russia measures requires a peace deal Ukraine accepts. The President can waive almost everything on national interest grounds.

US Russia Sanctions Move in Both Directions as the EU's 22nd Package and Britain's 600 Tankers Carry the Load

Sat, 10 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The United States imposed its toughest Russia sanctions in October 2025, when it designated Rosneft and Lukoil, Russia’s two largest oil companies. Those designations stand. Since then Washington has moved in both directions. In 2026 it removed several names from its lists, issued licenses letting already-loaded Russian oil cargoes be delivered and kept extending the deadline for Lukoil to sell its foreign assets. On October 1 it designated A7, a Russia-linked payments network used to evade sanctions, under its Iran and criminal-network authorities.

Sanctions on CrossGov.com

CRS Report on Israel, 2026 Elections and Government Formation

Election Uncertainty and Power Sharing

Trump Executive Order 14436 on Implementing the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026

Background

OFAC Sanctions Rwandan Defense Ministry Over M23 and 11 Facilitators of North Korean IT Worker Fraud

Treasury Sanctions a Greek Law Firm Behind Iran Shadow Fleet Ships as FinCEN Issues Its First Subpoena to a European Bank

OFAC Hits Iran Offshore Banks, a Cartel del Noreste Racetrack and Chinese Firms Tied to Google Trade Secret Theft in One Week

Russian Sanctions Relief Exposes a Collision Between Energy Policy and Congressional Intent

McConnell Joins Senators Demanding Trump Rescind the Russian Diesel License as the Graham Act Deadline Nears

Treasury Fines Bank of America More Than $1.2 Billion for Willful Money Laundering and Sanctions Violations, a Record for the OCC

EU Adopts Its 22nd Russia Sanctions Package With About 1,600 Listings in the Week Washington Loosened Its Own

Graham Act Tariff Deadline Is Days Away With No Country List, Rates or Waiver Published

Rubio Sanctions the Entire International Criminal Court as Washington and 28 Allies Blame Iran for the RAF Fairford Plot

Seven Senators Say Trump's Russian Diesel License Breaks the 2022 Import Ban, and Bessent Says They're Wrong

Trump's Animosity Toward Ukraine Rewards Putin: From the Oval Office Ambush to a Russian Diesel Deal

The Graham Russia Sanctions Act Takes Effect on October 19 as Trump Strikes a Diesel Deal With Putin

US Russia Sanctions Move in Both Directions as the EU's 22nd Package and Britain's 600 Tankers Carry the Load