On July 8, 2026, the US Department of State announced that President Trump had notified Congress of his administration’s intent to rescind Syria’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism (“SST”). The notification initiates a 45-day period that must elapse before the rescission takes effect. In the accompanying press statement, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that “[l]ifting sanctions on Syria will unlock international trade and investment, give Syria a chance to rebuild, and open…
On May 1, 2026, President Trump signed Executive Order 14404 (“EO 14404”) entitled “Imposing Sanctions on Those Responsible for Repression in Cuba and for Threats to United States National Security and Foreign Policy,” which significantly expands the US sanctions framework targeting Cuba. EO 14404 imposed a modern US secondary sanctions regime targeting Cuba that is likely to encourage many non-US companies – particularly those with US assets/business and/or reliance on the US financial system –…
On November 10, 2025, the US Department of the Treasury, US Department of State, and US Department of Commerce issued a Tri-Seal Advisory (see here) summarizing the current scope of US sanctions and export controls relief measures applicable to Syria. The document serves as a consolidated reference point for the actions taken so far to relax US sanctions and export controls for Syria, including those aimed at facilitating humanitarian assistance and early recovery efforts. The…
The US Department of State has issued a final rule amending the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (“ITAR”) at 22 CFR § 126.1 to remove the embargo on defense trade with Cambodia, following its announcement effective October 26, 2025 that it would review ITAR license applications for Cambodia on a case-by-case basis (see here and here). Cambodia had been subject to a US arms embargo since December 2021, as discussed in our previous blog post. …