OFAC Lifts Most Sanctions On Libya, Maintains Targeted Sanctions On Qaddafi-Related Entities

On September 19, 2011, the Office of Foreign Assets Control, US Department of the Treasury (OFAC), issued two new general licenses to the Libyan Sanctions Regulations (LSR), 31 C.F.R. 570.  The new licenses are consistent with the United Nations Security Council resolution 2009 (2011), adopted on September 16, 2011, establishing a Libyan support mission and partly lifting the arms embargo on Libya and the asset freeze targeting entities connected to the previous Qaddafi regime.  The new licenses effectively end the broader Libya embargo imposed on the Government of Libya as a whole, and re-open opportunities for US persons and companies to conduct business with the Libyan petroleum sector.  OFAC's Libya sanctions program can now be characterized, for the most part, as a blocking regime targeting specifically designated entities affiliated with the former Qaddafi government.