The U.S should build a new international technology task force to increase technology trade cooperation with allies, the German Marshall Fund said in a report this week. The report, authored by GMF technology policy experts Karen Kornbluh and Julia Trehu, said the task force could focus on semiconductors, green technologies and critical minerals, and would allow members to share supply chain data and “provide a venue for countries to reconcile export controls.”
The U.S. is planning more export restrictions on semiconductor manufacturing items destined to China and could publish them as early as next month, Bloomberg reported March 10. The new restrictions could “double the number of machines” that require export licenses, the report said, placing new controls on Applied Materials and other chip equipment makers. The Biden administration plans to coordinate the new restrictions with the Netherlands and Japan, but “doesn’t plan to water down its plans if those other nations adopt weaker guidelines,” the report said.
U.S. export controls against China could cause the country to dominate the global industry for “lower-capability” chip technologies, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said in its annual threat assessment released last week. The DNI also warned that China, which is quickly building new chip factories, remains the “top threat to U.S. technological competitiveness.”
The Biden administration's FY 2024 budget request includes funding to support a new outbound investment review “program” and more money for U.S. agencies to carry out export control and sanctions authorities.
The Netherlands this week announced plans to impose new export controls on advanced semiconductor production equipment, a move the U.S. hopes will align it more closely with American restrictions on exports to China. The new Dutch controls (see 2302160011) will target specific chip technologies “in which the Netherlands has a unique and leading position,” Trade Minister Liesje Schreinemacher said in a letter to the country’s parliament, adding that any additional restrictions should be imposed multilaterally.
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The Biden administration is “close” to issuing new rules to restrict outbound investments in certain technologies that could help China advance its chip capabilities, The Associated Press reported March 4. The rules will limit American investment in certain “advanced technologies that have national security applications,” the report said, including “next-generation military capabilities.” U.S. officials have confirmed they are working on an outbound investment review mechanism (see 2302140083 and 2301120035), and The Wall Street Journal reported March 3 that the White House is expected to seek additional funding for the new tool in its upcoming budget request, expected to be released this week.
Russia is using the United Arab Emirates as a major transhipment hub to import controlled goods, a Treasury Department official said last week. UAE companies exported more than $18 million worth of goods to sanctioned Russian entities between July and November, said Elizabeth Rosenberg, assistant secretary for terrorist financing and financial crimes. They also exported more than $5 million worth of U.S.-origin and export controlled goods to Russia June to November. Those items included “semiconductor devices” used by Russia to fight its war in Ukraine.
Western democracies should pursue new restrictions on technology researchers or risk further falling behind China in global technological competition, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute said in a report that it released this week. The institute warned that China’s dominant research position could allow that country to “gain a stranglehold on the global supply of certain critical technologies.”
The Bureau of Industry and Security this week added 37 entities to the Entity List for a range of activities the agency said threaten U.S. national security, including for supporting Russia’s war effort, sending controlled items to China’s military and aiding companies already listed on the Entity List. The entities -- located in Belarus, Myanmar, China, Pakistan, Russia and Taiwan -- will be subject to a license requirement for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations with varying license application review policies. BIS also modified 10 existing Chinese entries on the Entity List. The additions and changes took effect March 2.