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ARTICLE · 08 JULY 2026

Weekly Sanctions Update: July 6, 2026

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This comprehensive sanctions update examines recent enforcement actions across multiple jurisdictions, including OFAC's targeting of Mexican cartel fuel smuggling operations, coordinated investigations into Russian sanctions violations in New Zealand and Australia, and evolving regulatory frameworks in the EU and UK. The analysis explores how governments are adapting their sanctions regimes to address emerging threats from organized crime networks, chemical weapons proliferation, and military-industrial sup

United StatesGovernment, Public Sector
Zayna Dembinski
Zayna Dembinski

The Sanctions Update is compiled by Steptoe’s International Trade and Regulatory Compliance team and Steptoe’s Strategic Risk team. You can subscribe to receive the Sanctions Update every week through Steptoe’s International Compliance Blog and Stepwise Risk Outlook publication home pages. 

For more information or advice on any of the developments discussed below, please contact a member of our sanctions team here.

US Developments

OFAC Targets Cartel Fuel Smuggling

On June 30, 2026, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned two Mexican nationals and nine entities allegedly tied to a fuel theft scheme linked to the Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), a cartel that was previously designated as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) and Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO).

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