Sudanese sanctions and Iranian transactions regulations: Agricultural commodities, medicine, and medical devices one-year export licenses; issuance policy clarification,

[Federal Register: March 20, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 53)]

[Rules and Regulations]

[Page 12980-12981]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr20mr07-7]

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Office of Foreign Assets Control

31 CFR Parts 538 and 560

Sudanese Sanctions Regulations; Iranian Transactions Regulations

AGENCY: Office of Foreign Assets Control, Treasury.

[[Page 12981]]

ACTION: Policy statement.

SUMMARY: The Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the Treasury is issuing this notice to clarify its policy with respect to the process for issuing one-year licenses to export agricultural commodities, medicine, and medical devices to Sudan and Iran pursuant to section 906 of the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000, Title IX of Public Law 106-387 (October 28, 2000).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Assistant Director for Compliance Outreach & Implementation, tel.: 202/622-2490, Assistant Director for Licensing, tel.: 202/622-2480, Assistant Director for Policy, tel.: 202/622-4855, or Chief Counsel, tel.: 202/622-2410, Office of Foreign Assets Control, Department of the Treasury, Washington, DC 20220.

Clarification of Policy With Respect to the Process for Issuing One- Year Licenses To Export Agricultural Commodities, Medicine, and Medical Devices to Sudan and Iran

The Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000, Title IX of Public Law 106-387 (October 28, 2000), as amended (``TSRA''), provides that, with certain exceptions, the President may not impose a unilateral agricultural sanction or unilateral medical sanction against a foreign country or foreign entity unless, at least 60 days before imposing such a sanction, the President submits a report describing the proposed sanction and the reasons for it and Congress enacts a joint resolution approving the report. Section 906 of TSRA, however, requires that the export of agricultural commodities, medicine, and medical devices to Cuba, or to the government of a country that has been determined by the Secretary of State to have repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism, or to any entity in such country, shall only be made pursuant to one-year licenses issued by the United States Government. Section 906 also requires that procedures shall be in place to deny licenses for exports to any entity within such country that promotes international terrorism.

Effective July 26, 2001, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (``OFAC'') promulgated amendments to the Sudanese Sanctions Regulations, 31 CFR part 538 (the ``SSR''), and the Iranian Transactions Regulations, 31 CFR part 560 (the ``ITR''), to implement section 906 of TSRA. See 66 FR 36683 (July 12, 2001) (the ``rule''). The preamble to the rule described an expedited process for the issuance of the one-year license required by section 906 for all exports and reexports of agricultural commodities, medicine, and medical devices to Sudan or Iran. The expedited process included, when appropriate, referral of the one-year license request to other government agencies for guidance in evaluating the request. If no government agency raised an objection to or concern with the application within nine business days from the date of any such referral, OFAC would issue the one-year license, provided that the request otherwise met the requirements set forth in the rule. Conversely, if any government agency raised an objection to the request within nine business days from the date of referral, OFAC would deny the license request. Finally, if any government agency raised a concern short of an objection with the request within nine business days from the date of referral, OFAC would delay its response to the license request for no more than thirty additional days to allow for further review of the request.

OFAC instituted this expedited licensing process described in the preamble following the rule's publication in July 2001. However, the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, magnified concerns about international terrorism and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. These concerns prompted greater scrutiny on the part of OFAC and other agencies of the U.S. Government of those entities within state sponsors of terrorism to whom agricultural commodities, medicine, and medical devices were being exported. Moreover, the volume of license requests has increased substantially since the inception of the TSRA program, and applications are now much more complicated than earlier ones, often involving dozens and sometimes hundreds of products and parties to the transaction. All of these factors have contributed to longer OFAC and interagency reviews of the applications, and thus longer processing times for the applications, than suggested in the preamble to the rule. This review is often further complicated by the fact that these license requests are evaluated both in terms of whether the foreign entities involved in the transaction ``promote international terrorism,'' as required by section 906 of TSRA, and in terms of whether the products at issue implicate independent export control regimes involving chemical or biological weapons or weapons of mass destruction, as provided in section 904(2)(C) of TSRA. Scrutiny of license applications on the latter ground often results in requests for additional information by the reviewing agencies, which neither the applicant nor OFAC can anticipate, further delaying the review process.

Accordingly, today OFAC is issuing this notice to clarify its policy with respect to the licensing process for TSRA exports. OFAC will continue to conduct a review of all applications for one-year licenses consistent with the requirements of section 906 of TSRA, which may include a referral to other government agencies for guidance, and will respond to such applications upon completion of the review. Please be aware that OFAC's processing of one-year license requests may take longer than the time periods suggested at the inception of the TSRA program. OFAC will continue to respond to such applications in as timely a manner as is possible under the circumstances of each individual license application, consistent with OFAC's obligations under TSRA, the ITR, and the SSR.

Dated: February 9, 2007. Adam J. Szubin, Director, Office of Foreign Assets Control. [FR Doc. E7-4950 Filed 3-19-07; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4811-42-P