The Bureau of Industry and Security needs to “answer to Congress immediately” if U.S. software company Synopsys was able to illegally export semiconductor design software to blacklisted Chinese companies, Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said. McCaul -- referencing a report this week that said BIS is investigating Synopsys for potentially transferring technology to China’s HiSilicon and Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (see 2204140057) -- said the agency needs to do a better job of preventing illegal exports on the front end.
The U.S. should redouble efforts to control emerging and foundational technologies, establish a new outbound investment screening regime and create a new multilateral export control forum with close allies, said Emily Kilcrease, an economic statecraft expert with the Center for a New American Security. A new multilateral regime could be challenging to stand up, Kilcrease said, but is “imperative” to prevent proliferation of sensitive technologies to adversaries, including China and Russia.
The Commerce Department is investigating U.S. software company Synopsys for possibly violating U.S. export controls against China, Bloomberg reported April 13. Commerce is looking into whether Synopsys, the world’s leading supplier of semiconductor design software, worked with Chinese affiliates to provide chip designs and software to Huawei Technologies’ HiSilicon unit for manufacture at Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation, the report said. Both companies are subject to Entity List licensing restrictions.
The Bureau of Industry and Security added 10 more planes to its list of restricted aircraft, including seven planes owned by Belavia, the first Belarusian airline added to the list, the agency said April 14. The agency also added two additional planes owned by Utair and one aircraft owned by Aeroflot. BIS said it will impose penalties and/or jail time or revoke export privileges for any company or person who violates the Export Administration Regulations by providing “any form of service” to the listed aircraft without a required BIS license.
Russia’s war on Ukraine has greatly accelerated U.S. and EU collaboration on export controls, officials said, even surpassing some of the short-term goals of the Trade and Technology Council formed last year. Because of the highly coordinated controls, officials from both sides speak frequently and are able to discuss a range of shared export control issues, the officials said, including enforcement, licensing and the future of multilateral regimes.
The Bureau of Industry and Security added 10 more planes to its list of restricted aircraft, including planes owned by Aeroflot, Utair and Belavia, the first Belarusian airline added to the list. The agency also updated tail numbers for 32 planes and authorized two aircraft to leave Russia. The agency said it will impose penalties and/or jail time or revoke export privileges for any company or person that violates the Export Administration Regulations by providing “any form of service” to the listed aircraft without a required BIS license.
Although the Bureau of Industry and Security hasn’t yet announced any enforcement actions against lessors or financers of restricted Russian aircraft, those parties still face significant compliance risks, Katten said in an April 8 alert.
The Bureau of Industry and Security on April 8 removed several planes from its list of restricted Russian aircraft after they were “authorized to leave Russia,” an agency spokesperson said. The aircraft belong to AirBridgeCargo, Atran, Azur Air and Royal Flight. BIS last week issued temporary denial orders for three Russian airlines but said it is accepting authorization requests from aircraft owners to continue to fly the planes once they’re out of Russia and Russian control (see 2204070012).
The Bureau of Industry and Security last week added Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland to the list of countries that have imposed similar export controls against Russia and are excluded from certain license requirements under two recently issued foreign direct product rules (see 2202240069). The additions take effect April 12. BIS previously added South Korea to the list (see 2203040075), which has more than 30 countries.
The Bureau of Industry and Security last week expanded its export license requirements for Russia and Belarus to cover all items on the Commerce Control List, further widening restrictions that previously only applied to categories 3-9 of the CCL (see 2202240069). The revised requirements, which took effect April 8, will now apply to all items in CCL categories 0-2, including nuclear materials, facilities and equipment (Category 0); materials, chemicals, microorganisms and toxins (Category 1); and materials processing equipment (Category 2).