News : Ukraine adds U.S. sanctions officials to advise Zelenskyy

Wednesday, March 30, 2022

Ukraine adds U.S. sanctions officials to advise Zelenskyy

Mar 30, 2022

With Daniel Lippman

MORE PRO BONO HELP FOR ZELENSKYY: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has enlisted a team of attorneys from Morrison & Foerster , including several former U.S. sanctions officials, to advise his office on sanctions regimes and engaging with the federal government, according to documents filed with the Justice Department this week.

— The team includes John Smith, a former director of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control, which administers U.S. sanctions, and Andrea Delisi, who worked in OFAC until last year. Reiley Jo Porter, Nathanael Kurcab and Sonja Nicole Swanbeck will also work on the account, according to DOJ filings. The firm is offering its services to Zelenskyy's office free of charge — one of several doing so as Russia's invasion of the country drags into its second month.

— Morrison & Foerster will advise Zelenskyy's team on "regulatory issues, including U.S., EU, and UK sanctions regimes," provide context to new policies and actions, and offer guidance on engaging with U.S. officials. Other duties will include "updating advice in response to emerging conditions," and could include coordinating with Ukraine's economic, justice and foreign affairs ministries, the documents note.

— Kyiv has seen a rush of free assistance since the war began and as Zelenskyy's administration has quickly ramped up a political messaging machine to amplify Zelenskyy's pleas for various economic penalties on Russia and military aid. Yorktown Solutions' Daniel Vajdich, who previously represented the country's oil and gas lobby and a Ukrainian NGO to the tune of nearly a $1 million per year, has now expanded his work for the state-run gas industry and is now working pro bono.

— And the Democratic consulting powerhouse SKDK last month offered speechwriting help to Ukraine's delegation to the United Nations, though that assistance was rebuffed, the firm later said in a filing. Mercury Public Affairs, a major player in the foreign lobbying sphere who until last month represented several Russian clients that are facing U.S. sanctions now or have in the past, registered a few weeks ago to provide pro bono services to GloBee International Agency for Regional Development, a Ukraine-based strategy and lobbying consortium, as did lobbying and consulting shop Your Global Strategy.

— And a Maryland-based attorney, Lukas Jan Kaczmarek , disclosed to the Justice Department earlier this month that he was working to help Ukraine's defense ministry "source existing inventory of equipment needed" by the ministry, telling DOJ that he was not being paid for the work.

Good afternoon and welcome to PI. Tips: coprysko@politico.com. Twitter: @caitlinoprysko.

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HOW META USED TARGETED VICTORY TO TAKE ON RIVAL TIKTOK: "Facebook parent company Meta is paying one of the biggest Republican consulting firms in the country to orchestrate a nationwide campaign seeking to turn the public against TikTok," The Washington Post's Taylor Lorenz and Drew Harwell report, shedding light on the "extent to which Meta and its partners will use opposition-research tactics on the Chinese-owned, multibillion-dollar rival that has become one of the most downloaded apps in the world, often outranking even Meta's popular Facebook and Instagram apps."

— "The campaign includes placing op-eds and letters to the editor in major regional news outlets, promoting dubious stories about alleged TikTok trends that actually originated on Facebook, and pushing to draw political reporters and local politicians into helping take down its biggest competitor. These bare-knuckle tactics, long commonplace in the world of politics, have become increasingly noticeable within a tech industry where companies vie for cultural relevance and come at a time when Facebook is under pressure to win back young users."

— "Employees with the firm, Targeted Victory, worked to undermine TikTok through a nationwide media and lobbying campaign portraying the fast-growing app, owned by the Beijing-based company ByteDance, as a danger to American children and society, according to internal emails shared with The Washington Post."

— "Campaign operatives were also encouraged to use TikTok's prominence as a way to deflect from Meta's own privacy and antitrust concerns. 'Bonus point if we can fit this into a broader message that the current bills/proposals aren't where [state attorneys general] or members of Congress should be focused,' a Targeted Victory staffer wrote."

DEMPSEY HEADS TO BROWNSTEIN: Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck is bringing on new financial services expertise as policymaking action in Washington prepares to shift from the Hill to federal agencies. Leah Dempsey, currently the vice president and senior counsel for federal advocacy at ACA International, the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals, will join the firm next month as a shareholder.

— "We think the best way to kind of grow our financial services practice [is by] not simply focusing just on straight shoe-leather lobbying," but by deploying an advocacy approach that incorporates regulator maneuvering, too, Marc Lampkin, the managing partner of Brownstein's D.C. office, told PI. It's an issue that's becoming increasingly relevant with the slim margins Democrats currently hold in Congress, with the party expected to lose seats and likely control of at least the House in November's midterms.

— "If we have split government, the ability to get big, significant pieces of legislation is relatively slim," Lampkin said, pointing to increased movement at the CFPB and SEC most recently on cryptocurrency as a sign "the action is going to shift from congressional action to regulatory action." Influencing the more opaque regulatory process also requires more "interpretation and strong legal skills," Lampkin said, which Dempsey has, in addition to ties to the Hill.

WHAT CRYPTO IS UP TO IN THE MIDTERMS: The Post's Tory Newmyer has new details on how cryptocurrency advocates are courting Democrats while "assembling a big-money effort to elect a slate of crypto enthusiasts to Congress in this year's midterm elections." Newmyer reports that the crypto exchange Coinbase "hosted a previously unreported fundraiser for Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) over a Zoom call last week."

— Meanwhile "executives are organizing events for insiders to contribute to candidates in cryptocurrency. And they are backing some upstart pols, including elementary school teacher Aarika Rhodes, who has launched a primary challenge to Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.), one of the industry's most outspoken critics."

— "Industry leaders say Republican politicians, who have widely embraced crypto, will benefit from the sector's largesse. But they are devoting special attention to Democrats, since the majority party is divided on the matter. … But a growing number of Democrats — including liberal freshman Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.), whose Bronx district is one of the poorest in the country — are making a progressive case for the technology, arguing that its decentralized networks could give consumers better, cheaper financial services than those offered by big banks."

MFA GOES TRANSATLANTIC: The Managed Funds Association , which represents the hedge fund industry, will open an office in Brussels, its first permanent office outside the U.S. The trade group has tapped Taggart Davis, who most recently was JPMorgan's executive director for government relations in Brussels, as managing director and head of EU government affairs. Davis also served as vice chair of the board of directors at the American Chamber of Commerce to the EU.

— The trade group's 150 member firms include 80 percent of funds with over $1 billion in assets under management, it said, which provides an incentive for the organization to operate in jurisdictions where members operate and invest.

Jobs Report

— Christian Hulen has been promoted to be national political director at The Lukens Company. He most recently was senior strategist at the firm.

— James Hong has joined Urban Legend, a tech platform that connects influencers and causes, as vice president and chief of staff. He previously was a vice president and the chief of staff for SKDK's digital practice.

— Sen. Bob Menendez's (D-N.J.) office has added Hartley Voss as senior speechwriter. Voss previously was at West Wing Writers and has written for several Hollywood shows.

— Nick Lisowski is now a director of federal advocacy at PhRMA. He previously was health policy adviser to Rep. Buddy Carter (R-Ga.), and is a Bruce Westerman alum.

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New Joint Fundraisers

None.

New PACs

APE PAC (Hybrid PAC)
4 Tour Political Action Committee (Leadership PAC: Jesse Jensen)
Ohio Democratic Hispanic_Latino Caucus (PAC)
No Pardons (Super PAC)
Senate Majority Fund (Super PAC)

New Lobbying Registrations

Actum I, LLC: American Association Of Consumer Credit Professionals
Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP: Alaska Airlines
Compass Government Relations Partners, LLC: Coalition For Innovative Laboratory Testing, Inc.
Crossroads Strategies, LLC: Micron Technology, Inc.
Invariant LLC: International Fresh Produce Association
Invariant LLC: The Aarons Company, Inc.
K&L Gates, LLP: California State University Maritime Academy
K&L Gates, LLP: National Glass Association
Mehlman Castagnetti Rosen & Thomas, Inc.: National Fair Housing Alliance
Squire Patton Boggs: Gemmy Industries
Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP Dba Taft Advisors LLC Fka (Taft, Stettinius & Hollister, LLP): City Of Elkhart
Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP Dba Taft Advisors LLC Fka (Taft, Stettinius & Hollister, LLP): City Of Greenwood
Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP Dba Taft Advisors LLC Fka (Taft, Stettinius & Hollister, LLP): Ibex Partners, LLC On Behalf Of Water And Health Advisory Council
The Friedlander Group: Ask LLP
Tiber Creek Group: Mississippi County, Arkansas
Van Scoyoc Associates: Pearson Education, Inc./Ncs Pearson, Inc.
Vnf Solutions, LLC: Taylor Shellfish Company
Washington2 Advocates: Putala Strategies LLC (On Behalf Of Partner Therapeutics)