USA – WASHINGTON, DC Trends and Developments Contributed by: Jonathan M. Epstein, Daniel E. Goren, Tahlia Townsend and Manny Levitt, Holland & Knight LLP
as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists Recent designations of multiple cartels in Mexico, Latin America, and the Caribbean as Specially Desig - nated Global Terrorists (SDGTs) and Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) create unique and significant risks for businesses operating in affected jurisdictions. On 20 January 2025, President Trump issued EO 14157, announcing a policy “to ensure the total elimi - nation of these organisations’ presence in the United States and their ability to threaten the territory, safety, and security of the United States through their extra - territorial command-and-control structures.” Follow - ing EO 14157, the State has designated the cartels and transnational organisations listed below as SDGTs and FTOs, and OFAC has designated dozens of mem - bers of these and other groups allegedly involved in narcotics trafficking. • Tren de Aragua (TdA) (described as originating in Venezuela with cells in Colombia, Peru, and Chile, with reports of sporadic presence in Ecuador, Bolivia, and Brazil). • Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) (which reportedly origi - nated in Los Angeles, and “actively recruits, organ - ises, and spreads violence” in El Salvador, Hondu - ras, Guatemala, Mexico, and the United States). • Cártel de Sinaloa (based in Sinaloa, Mexico and described as “one of the world’s most powerful drug cartels”). • Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) (reportedly present in nearly every part of Mexico, with contacts in Australia, China, and Southeast Asia). • Cártel del Noreste (CDN) (reportedly present in Northeast Mexico) • La Nueva Familia Michoacana (LNFM) (allegedly based in the Pacific coast state of Michoacan, with operations in various other Mexican states). • Cártel de Golfo (CDG) (reportedly based in north - east Mexico). • Cárteles Unidos (CU) (reportedly “formed from an alliance of multiple cartels and other groups in Michoacán, Mexico”). • Viv Ansanm (described as a “coalition of gangs” operating in Port-au-Prince, G-9 and G-Pép, Haiti).
• Gran Grif (described as “the largest gang in Haiti’s Artibonite department”). Many of the organisations listed above were already subject to US blocking sanctions. However, the updated designations increase the sanctions risk for businesses operating in regions where these parties are active for several reasons. First, the SDGT designations create secondary sanc - tions risks due to provisions in EO 13224, as amend - ed, authorising sanctions on persons that are owned or controlled by, or act for or on behalf of an SDGT, or have assisted in, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support to an SDGT, or are otherwise “associated with” an SDGT. Second, the FTO designations create liability expo - sure under amendments to the Anti-Terrorism Act, which permit US nationals injured by international terrorism committed, planned, or authorised by an FTO to file civil lawsuits against persons who “know - ingly [p]rovide substantial assistance” to the FTO (see 18 USC. § 2333 (d)(2)). Criminal charges may also be brought against persons who provide “material sup - port” or “willfully provide or collect funds” for FTOs (see 18 USC. §2339B). The new head of the DOJ’s Criminal Division has also listed FTO-related investi - gations and prosecutions as a key priority. According to OFAC, parties with operations in, or financial or supply chain connections to, the jurisdic - tions where the subject cartels and organisations are active face increased compliance risks because the designated entities may be involved in large, appar - ently legitimate businesses, particularly in the energy, hospitality, mining, and real estate sectors. Com - panies should therefore give careful consideration to compliance measures necessary to identify and address such counterparty risks. The “Shadow Fleet”: Maritime Shipping Remains Under Sanctions Spotlight Entities, individuals, and vessels involved in sanc - tions evasion within the maritime oil and gas ship - ping ecosystem have become increasingly common targets of US sanctions, particularly in connection with sanctions programs related to Venezuela, Rus -
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