The International Enforcement Law Reporter is a monthly print and online journal covering news and trends in international enforcement law.
Since September 1985, the International Enforcement Law Reporter has analyzed the premier developments in both the substantive and procedural aspects of international enforcement law. Read by practitioners, academics, and politicians, the IELR is a valuable guide to the difficult and dynamic field of international law.
On January 27, 2021, European Union and law enforcement authorities from eight other countries cooperated in taking down malware EMOTET. The U.S. Attorney in the Middle District of North Carolina filed an affidavit, setting forth its participation in the take down of EMOTET.
CAR has experienced several periods of armed conflict since ratifying the Rome Statute in 2001. The ICC prosecutor opened investigations in May 2007 that focused on war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed within the country from 2002-03.[1] The main case from this investigation was against the former rebel commander and later Congolese Vice President, Jean Pierre Bemba.
[1] Central African Republic (I and II), Coalition for the Int’l Crim. Court https://coalitionfortheicc.org/country/central-african-republic-i-and-ii (Last visited Jan. 29, 2021).
President Biden is not a stranger to Central America. As Vice-President, he met with Central American leaders in an effort to strengthen ties between the United States and the region. As a candidate for President, he has announced an ambitious plan for Central America, particularly the Northern Triangle of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. The Biden Plan to Build Security and Prosperity with the People of Central America sets forth a number of goals for the region, including $4 billion dollars in aid from the United States.
On January 9, 2021, the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China (the “MOFOCM”) promulgated MOFOM Order No. 1 of 2021 on Rules on Counteracting Unjustified Extraterritorial Application of Foreign Legislation and Other Measures (the “Blocking Statute). On January 21, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign of Foreign Affairs for the PRC announced the China imposed sanctions on former U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and 27 other U.S. officials.
On January 22, 2021, the Central Unit of the National Police of the Netherlands, after acting on an INTERPOL Red Diffusion issued by the Australian Federal Police (AFP), arrested alleged drug lord Tre Chi Lop. The AFP initially issued the arrest warrant for Tse Chi Lop, 57, in connection with AFP-led Operation Volante, which dismantled a global crime syndicate operating in five countries.[1]
On January 22, 2021, a Geneva court found Beny Steinmez guilty of bribing a public official to obtain an iron-ore mine in Guinea worth billions of dollars. The prior month, Romania’s Supreme Court overturned a lower court’s decision in June 2019 and found him guilty of defrauding the Romanian government.
On January 21, 2021, the European Parliament adopted a resolution to strengthen its tax haven blacklist.[1]
[1] European Parliament, EU tax haven blacklist is not catching the worst offenders, https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room, Jan. 21, 2021. For a video recording of the debate, see https://multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/en/home.
On January 27, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice announced a coordinated international law enforcement action to disrupt a sophisticated form of cybercrime and ransomware known as NetWalker.[1]
[1] U.S. Department of Justice, Department of Justice Launches Global Action Against NetWalker Ransomware, Press Rel. No. 21-96, Jan. 21, 2021.
The Biden administration took actions on January 26, 2021 to suspend the Trump administration’s recent sanctions against the Houthi rebel group in Yemen. This decision was followed closely by the Biden administration’s pause of pending arms sales to Saudi Arabia worth billions of dollars. The two actions may be early-stage indicators of President Biden’s foreign policy goals in the Gulf region and show a concern for both the humanitarian crisis in Yemen and the U.S.’s support of Saudi military operations.
On December 30, 2020 the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a civil forfeiture complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. The DOJ is alleging that commercial real estate, located at 55 Public Square in Cleveland, Ohio, was acquired using misappropriated funds from PivatBank in Ukraine.
