Embargoes and Sanctions

Tag: Embargoes and Sanctions

December 5, 2019

Stop Investing in China’s Brutality

Last month, the United States government issued sanctions against eight Chinese companies for complicity in the crackdown on Chinese Muslims in Xinjiang. As many as a million Uighurs, Kazakhs and other ethnic minorities have been “interned” — wrenched away from families and dumped into harsh detention camps that the government insists are merely re-education centers. […]

December 4, 2019

News Arms Control and Limitation and Disarmament Embargoes and Sanctions Kim Jong-un Mount Paektu (North Korea) North Korea Trump, Donald J United States International Relations

Kim Jong-un Visits Sacred Mountain on Horseback. Analysts Watch His Next Move.

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, this week took a second ride in less than two months on a white horse to the country’s sacred, snow-covered Mount Paektu. The images showing him “riding a steed through knee-high virgin snow” may look like typical propaganda. But analysts are holding their breath because of […]

December 3, 2019

News China Economic Conditions and Trends Embargoes and Sanctions Kim Jong-un North Korea Politics and Government Travel and Vacations

North Korea Touts New Resort, Seeking to Blunt U.N. Sanctions

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea said on Tuesday that its leader, Kim Jong-un, had opened a new mountain resort this week, calling it “an epitome of modern civilization,” as the isolated country tries to attract more foreign tourists to blunt the pain of international sanctions. Mr. Kim attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the Township […]

December 2, 2019

News Demonstrations, Protests and Riots Economic Conditions and Trends Embargoes and Sanctions Iran Khamenei, Ali Obama, Barack Pompeo, Mike Trump, Donald J United States International Relations United States Politics and Government

Sanctions May Have Fueled Iran Protests, but Have Yet to Further U.S. Goals

President Trump likes to say that Iran is “a different country” after 18 months of punishing American sanctions, and the protests sweeping Iranian cities suggest he may be right. Even his most vociferous critics acknowledge that Mr. Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign helped fuel that unrest. But it is far from clear that what is unfolding […]

December 2, 2019

News China Demonstrations, Protests and Riots Embargoes and Sanctions Hong Kong Hong Kong Protests (2019) Politics and Government Trump, Donald J

China Hits Back at U.S. Over Hong Kong Bill in a Mostly Symbolic Move

BEIJING — China said on Monday that it would suspend visits to Hong Kong by American warships and impose sanctions on several United States-based nongovernmental groups, in a mostly symbolic retaliation for tough human rights legislation President Trump signed last week. Hua Chunying, a spokeswoman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said the measures were a […]

December 2, 2019

News Blockchain (Technology) Cyberattacks and Hackers Cyberwarfare and Defense Embargoes and Sanctions Ethereum Foundation Griffith, Virgil North Korea Politics and Government United States International Relations Virtual Currency

He Gave a Cryptocurrency Talk in North Korea. The U.S. Arrested Him.

He was a former hacker from Alabama who styled himself a “disruptive technologist” and believed that he was using his data-mining expertise as a force for good. But then, in April, Virgil Griffith traveled to North Korea with a visa he had obtained from a diplomatic mission in New York City, going through China to […]

December 1, 2019

News Demonstrations, Protests and Riots Embargoes and Sanctions Iran Khamenei, Ali Rouhani, Hassan

With Brutal Crackdown, Iran Convulsed by Worst Unrest in 40 Years

Iran is experiencing its deadliest political unrest since the Islamic Revolution 40 years ago, with at least 180 people killed — and possibly hundreds more — as angry protests have been smothered in a government crackdown of unbridled force. It began two weeks ago with an abrupt increase of at least 50 percent in gasoline […]

November 27, 2019

News Embargoes and Sanctions Hong Kong Human Rights and Human Rights Violations Trump, Donald J United States Politics and Government

Trump Signs Hong Kong Democracy Legislation That Has Angered China

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — President Trump on Wednesday signed tough legislation that would impose sanctions on Chinese and Hong Kong officials responsible for human rights abuses in Hong Kong, expressing support for pro-democracy activists in the territory and most likely angering China as the two countries negotiate ending their trade war. “I signed these bills […]

November 23, 2019

News Caracas (Venezuela) Embargoes and Sanctions Foreign Aid Guaido, Juan Humanitarian Aid infant mortality Maduro, Nicolas Malnutrition Robberies and Thefts Venezuela

Venezuela’s Kids Are Dying. Are We Responsible?

CARACAS, Venezuela — This country is a kleptocracy ruled incompetently by thugs who are turning a prosperous oil-exporting nation into a failed state sliding toward starvation. So a young mom named Daniela Serrano weeps for her baby girl, Daisha — and I can’t help wondering if American economic sanctions also bear some responsibility. Serrano, 21, […]

November 21, 2019

News Embargoes and Sanctions Hong Kong House of Representatives International Trade and World Market Law and Legislation Senate Trump, Donald J United States International Relations United States Politics and Government

U.S. Bill Supporting Hong Kong Rights Heads to Trump’s Desk

A bill compelling the United States to support pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong could arrive on President Trump’s desk as soon as Thursday morning, potentially complicating the administration’s talks with China to end the trade war. The bill, passed by the Senate on Tuesday, would require the government to impose sanctions on Chinese officials responsible […]

November 20, 2019

News Communist Party of China Cruz, Ted Embargoes and Sanctions Hong Kong Hong Kong Protests (2019) McConnell, Mitch Pelosi, Nancy Rubio, Marco Schumer, Charles E

Senate Passes Bill to Support Hong Kong Protesters, Putting Pressure on Trump

WASHINGTON — The Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that compels the government to support Hong Kong pro-democracy activists by requiring it to impose sanctions on Chinese and Hong Kong officials responsible for human rights abuses in the territory. The bill, if enacted into law by President Trump, would also require the State Department to […]

November 19, 2019

News Agha-Soltan, Neda Censorship Computers and the Internet Demonstrations, Protests and Riots Embargoes and Sanctions Internet Society Iran Politics and Government

The Ayatollah Comes for the Internet

Authoritarian governments have increasingly sought to use internet disruptions and blockades as weapons to crush dissent. Reports of internet shutdowns have recently come from Hong Kong, Iraq and Indian-controlled Kashmir, where access to the internet has been cut off for more than three months now. Now it’s Iran’s turn. Over the weekend, the government imposed […]

November 17, 2019

News Demonstrations, Protests and Riots Economic Conditions and Trends Embargoes and Sanctions Iran Khamenei, Ali Oil (Petroleum) and Gasoline Politics and Government Prices (Fares, Fees and Rates) United States International Relations

Iran’s Supreme Leader Condemns Protesters as ‘Thugs’

TEHRAN, Iran — The supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on Sunday called angry protesters who have been setting fire to public property over an increase in gas prices “thugs,” signaling a potential crackdown on the demonstrations. Ayatollah Khamenei backed the government’s decision to raise the government-set prices for gasoline by 50 percent as […]

November 16, 2019

News 5G (Wireless Communications) China Commerce Department Embargoes and Sanctions Federal Communications Commission Huawei Technologies Co Ltd Trump, Donald J

U.S. Said to Extend Reprieve for Huawei

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is set to once again extend a license that will allow American companies to continue doing business with Huawei, the Chinese telecom giant, people familiar with the deliberations said. The fate of Huawei has hung in the balance for many months, as the Trump administration has deliberated over how to […]

November 15, 2019

News Embargoes and Sanctions Iran Oil (Petroleum) and Gasoline Rationing and Allocation of Resources

Protests Erupt in Iran as Fuel Prices Are Abruptly Raised

The authorities in Iran abruptly raised gasoline prices as much as 300 percent early Friday and imposed a strict rationing system, some of the most severe steps taken to manage an economic crisis caused in part by American sanctions. Within hours, protests erupted in Tehran and other cities. An announcement carried on state-run television described […]

November 15, 2019

News Embargoes and Sanctions Mnuchin, Steven T Presidential Election of 2020 Treasury Department Trump, Donald J United States Economy United States International Relations United States Politics and Government

Trump’s Embrace of Sanctions Irks Allies and Prompts Efforts to Evade Measures

WASHINGTON — President Trump’s increasing reliance on economic sanctions to solve foreign policy problems is fueling concern that the United States is abusing its financial power and prompting some governments to seek ways to evade American measures. In recent months, the United States has increased pressure on Iran and Venezuela, dangled the removal of North […]

November 12, 2019

News Alptekin, Ekim Ankara (Turkey) Embargoes and Sanctions Erdogan, Recep Tayyip Flynn, Michael T Gulen, Fethullah Halkbank Kushner, Jared Mnuchin, Steven T Trump Organization Trump, Donald J Trump, Ivanka Turkey United States International Relations United States Politics and Government

Behind Trump’s Dealings With Turkey: Sons-in-Law Married to Power

ISTANBUL — Behind President Trump’s accommodating attitude toward Turkey is an unusual back channel: a trio of sons-in-law who married into power and now play key roles in connecting Ankara with Washington. One, Turkey’s finance minister, is the son-in-law of its strongman president and oversees his country’s relationship with the United States. Another is the […]

November 10, 2019

News Ahvaz (Iran) Embargoes and Sanctions Iran Oil (Petroleum) and Gasoline Rouhani, Hassan

Iran Finds Oil Field With Over 50 Billion Barrels, Rouhani Says

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran has discovered an oil field in the country’s south with more than 50 billion barrels of crude oil, its president said on Sunday, a development that could bolster the nation’s proven reserves by a third as it struggles to sell energy abroad. The announcement by President Hassan Rouhani comes as Iran […]

November 4, 2019

News Embargoes and Sanctions Iran Nuclear Weapons United States International Relations Uranium

Iran Adds Advanced Centrifuges, Further Weakening Nuclear Deal

Iran said on Monday that it had started using a new set of advanced centrifuges, its latest move to build up its nuclear program, bringing the country a step closer to being able to produce enough nuclear material for a bomb. The move is the latest made by Iran since April to exceed the limitations […]

October 29, 2019

News Embargoes and Sanctions Engel, Eliot L House of Representatives McCaul, Michael T Senate Syria Trump, Donald J Turkey United States Defense and Military Forces United States International Relations United States Politics and Government

In Another Bipartisan Rebuke of Trump, House Votes for Sanctions Against Turkey

WASHINGTON — The House voted overwhelmingly on Tuesday to impose a series of sweeping sanctions on Turkey over its brutal assault on the Kurds in northern Syria, dealing its second bipartisan rebuke to President Trump this month for pulling back American forces to allow for the Turkish incursion. The measure drew broad support from Republicans, […]

October 26, 2019

News Airlines and Airplanes Cuba Embargoes and Sanctions Havana (Cuba) Maduro, Nicolas Trump, Donald J United States United States International Relations

Trump Administration Cuts Flights to Most Cuban Airports

WASHINGTON — The Transportation Department announced Friday that it would suspend flights from the United States to nine airports in Cuba beginning in December. The policy will sever air service to every international airport there except the one in Havana. The suspensions were made at the request of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who endorsed […]

October 24, 2019

News Defense and Military Forces Embargoes and Sanctions Europe European Union North Atlantic Treaty Organization United States International Relations

Trump’s Syria and Ukraine Moves Further Alienate America’s Already Wary Allies

BRUSSELS — European leaders have long understood that President Trump is an unreliable ally, subject to loud tantrums, abrupt shifts and sudden whims. They have worried about his ambivalence toward NATO, resented his personal attacks and bristled at his use of trade policy and economic sanctions to restrict their companies and markets. Until now, Europeans […]

October 22, 2019

News Defense and Military Forces Embargoes and Sanctions Iran Iraq Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Karbala (Iraq) Mohammed, The Prophet of Islam Muslims and Islam Pilgrimages Politics and Government Quds Force Shiite Muslims United States International Relations

A Shiite Holiday Turns Into a Test of Iranian Power in Iraq

KARBALA, Iraq — The annual ceremony commemorating a founding figure of Shiite Islam is one of the most important religious celebrations in the Shiite world, drawing millions of pilgrims to the holy city of Karbala, Iraq. This year, the Arbaeen ceremony was also a political skirmish — the latest test of Iran’s power in Iraq […]