WASHINGTON, Jan 28 (Portal) – The US Treasury Department’s top sanctions official, on a trip to Turkey and the Middle East next week, will warn countries and companies that they could lose access to the US market if they do business with Companies operating under US restrictions like Washington is cracking down on Russian attempts to circumvent sanctions imposed over its war in Ukraine.
Undersecretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson will travel to Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Turkey Jan. 29-February 3 and meet with government officials as well as businesses and financial institutions to reiterate Washington’s continued aggressive enforcement its sanctions, a Treasury Department spokesman told Portal.
“Individuals and entities operating in eligible jurisdictions may risk losing access to U.S. markets because they do business with sanctioned companies or fail to conduct adequate due diligence,” the spokesman said.
During his stay in the region, Nelson will discuss the Treasury Department’s efforts to crack down on Russian efforts to circumvent sanctions and export controls imposed over its brutal war against Ukraine, Iran’s destabilizing activities in the region, the risks of illegal Finances that undermine economic growth and foreign investment.
The trip marks the latest visit by a senior finance ministry official to Turkey to discuss sanctions, following a spate of warnings from finance and trade ministry officials last year as Washington ramped up pressure on Ankara to ensure enforcement of US restrictions against Russia.
TENSIONED RELATIONSHIPS
Nelson’s trip coincides with a period of strained relations between the United States and Turkey as the two NATO allies disagree on a variety of issues.
Most recently, Turkey’s refusal to give the green light to Sweden and Finland’s NATO bids has worried Washington, while Ankara is frustrated that its bid to buy F-16 fighter jets is increasingly dependent on the two Nordic countries can join the alliance.
Nelson will visit Turkey’s capital Ankara and financial hub Istanbul on February 2-3. He will warn companies and banks to avoid transactions related to potential transfers of dual-use technologies that could ultimately be used by the Russian military, the spokesman said.
Dual-use items can have both commercial and military applications.
Washington and its allies have imposed several rounds of sanctions on Moscow since the invasion that killed and wounded thousands and reduced Ukrainian cities to rubble.
Turkey has condemned the Russian invasion and sent armed drones to Ukraine. At the same time, it opposes Western sanctions against Russia and maintains close ties with both Moscow and Kyiv, its Black Sea neighbors.
It also boosted trade and tourism with Russia. Some Turkish firms have bought or attempted to buy Russian assets from Western partners who have backed down under the sanctions, while others have large assets in the country.
But Ankara has pledged that international sanctions will not be circumvented in Turkey.
Washington is also concerned about circumventing US sanctions on Iran.
The United States last month imposed sanctions on prominent Turkish businessman Sitki Ayan and his corporate network, accusing him of acting on behalf of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps as an intermediary in oil sales and money laundering.
During his stay in the United Arab Emirates, Nelson will note the “poor compliance with sanctions” in the country, the spokesman said.
Washington imposed a series of sanctions on UAE-based companies for sanctions-circumvention related to Iran and on Thursday named a UAE-based airline company for supporting Russian mercenary company Wagner Group fighting in Ukraine.
(This article has been corrected to change the heading to United Arab Emirates, Turkey, not Middle East; Turkey is added in paragraph 1.)
Reporting by Daphne Psaledakis and Humeyra Pamuk Editing by Don Durfee and Leslie Adler
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