Day: November 20, 2017

UN EXTENDS ARM EMBARGOES ON SOMALIA AND ERITREA

The UN Security Council Resolution 2385 (2017) extends the modified arms embargo on Somalia as well as the authorisation for maritime interdiction of illicit arms imports and charcoal exports until 15^th November 2018. The arms ban on Eritrea has also been renewed until 15^th November 2018.

https://www.un.org/press/en/2017/sc13065.doc.htm

US RE-DESIGNATES NORTH KOREA A STATE SPONSOR OF TERRORISM

On 20^th November, President Trump has re-designated North Korea a state sponsor of terrorism. The announcement allows the US to treat the country with special considerations, opening the door to using sanctions and penalties to deter further nuclear proliferation.

Following the success of the AML seminars held in October, and as a result of member feedback, the CIOT presented a webinar at on 20th November. The Money Laundering Regulations 2017 came into force on the 26th June and brought in a number of new requirements for supervised members. The joint CIOT/ATT webinar provides an introduction to the changes, as well as discussing the new UK NRA and risk assessment in general. The webinar will also be available on the CIOT website for 12 months.
https://www.tax.org.uk/policy-technical/technical-news/anti-money-laundering-aml-webinar-monday-20th-november

On 20^th November the Telegraph reported that French scientists had confirmed that a radioactive cloud had spread over Europe following a nuclear accident in Russia or Kazakhstan.  It reported that France’s nuclear safety institute, IRSN, picked up faint traces of ruthenium 106, a radioactive nuclide that is produced when atoms are split in a nuclear reactor and which does not occur naturally, in three of its 40 monitoring stations late September.  The French nuclear regulator if an accident of this magnitude had happened in France it would have required the evacuation or sheltering of people in a radius of “a few kilometres around the accident site”.  The IRSN has been reporting the incident since October.

http://www.irsn.fr/EN/Pages/Home.aspx

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/11/10/harmless-radioactive-cloud-europe-may-have-come-nuclear-accident/?WT.mc_id=tmg_share_em&utm_source=POLITICO.EU&utm_campaign=042b480120-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2017_11_20&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_10959edeb5-042b480120-190081609

http://www.irsn.fr/EN/newsroom/News/Pages/20171109_Detection-of-Ruthenium-106-in-France-and-in-Europe-Results-of-IRSN-investigations.aspx