Baker McKenzie’s Sanctions Blog published the alert titled OFAC issues new and amended Russia General Licenses, FAQs; new fact sheet on agricultural trade on 19 July 2022. Read the article via the link here. Please also visit our Sanctions Blog for the most recent updates.
Baker McKenzie’s Sanctions Blog published the alert titled House NDAA would ban federal contracts with businesses operating in Russia on 20 July 2022. Read the article via the link here. Please also visit our Sanctions Blog for the most recent updates.
The recently signed United States-Kenya Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership focuses on enhanced engagement, increased trade and investment, and sustainable and inclusive growth that is beneficial to both countries. The agreement aligns with the US’s renewed Prosper Africa initiative, announced a year ago.
In an attempt to protect its oil and gas industry, Texas has passed legislation that seeks to punish investment firms that divest from fossil fuel related investments. On 16 March 2022, the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Glenn Hegar, sent a letter to 19 major financial companies which was not limited to US or Texas-based companies and included Japanese companies requesting verification that they do not engage in investment policies that result in the boycott of fossil fuel-based energy. This request was made pursuant to Texas Government Code Chapter 809: recent legislation prohibiting the Texas Government from investing in financial companies that take any action intended to penalize, inflict economic harm, or limit commercial relations with a company based on the company’s involvement in fossil fuel-based energy.
On 8 July 2022, the Department of Justice announced a settlement of cybersecurity fraud charges against Aerojet Rocketdyne Inc. (Aerojet) following an action under the False Claims Act. Aerojet agreed to pay USD 9 million to the US government to settle allegations that it misrepresented its compliance with cybersecurity requirements when entering into federal government contracts with NASA and the Department of Defense.
Over the past few months, the Federal Trade Commission has engaged in a comprehensive review of how the agency should evaluate antitrust issues affecting the pharmaceutical distribution stack.
On June 30, 2022, the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security announced four key policy changes to strengthen the administrative enforcement program and tackle external threats. These policy changes prioritize the “most serious violations” and cases that pose the greatest danger to US security.
The Partnership for Global Infrastructure Initiative (PGII) was launched in June 2022 at the G7 Summit in Germany. The PGII is a USD 600 billion lending initiative to fund infrastructure projects in the developing world, with a particular focus on Africa. One of the aims of the initiative is to help address the massive infrastructure investment gap in Africa.
The use of endorsements and reviews in advertising continues to be an area of active Federal Trade Commission (FTC) enforcement. The FTC has proposed updates to its Endorsement Guides to strengthen advertising guides related to endorsements and reviews.
Baker McKenzie’s Sanctions Blog published the alert titled US Government Sanctions More than 100 Russia-Related Parties and Prohibits the Import of Russian Gold in Coordination with G7 Allies on 1 July 2022. Read the article via the link here. Please also visit our Sanctions Blog for the most recent updates.