Michigan-based Thermotron Industries violated U.S. export controls when it shipped a controlled environmental test chamber to South Korea without a license, the Bureau of Industry and Security said in an enforcement order released this week. BIS said Thermotron, an environmental test equipment manufacturer, exported the test chamber in 2012 despite it being subject to missile technology controls and subject to a license requirement under Export Control Classification Number 9B106.
The Bureau of Industry and Security recently completed interagency reviews for two final rules. One rule will make revisions to the Unverified List and clarify criteria that may lead to Entity List additions (see 2209300020), and another rule will provide guidance on penalty determinations in anti-boycott-related settlements (see 2209270011). The reviews were completed Sept. 29 and Sept. 26, respectively.
The U.S. could issue new export controls on China, including restrictions on technologies used in high-performance computing and advanced semiconductors, as soon as this week, The New York Times reported Oct. 3. The report calls the new measures “some of the most significant steps taken by the Biden administration to cut off China’s access to advanced semiconductor technology,” adding they may include a “broad expansion” of the foreign direct product rule to cover additional Chinese firms.
If Republicans retake control of the House after the midterm elections in November, the chamber’s Foreign Affairs Committee will initiate a review of the Bureau of Industry and Security and its export control procedures, said Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas. McCaul said the review would examine BIS’ progress in restricting emerging and foundational technologies under the Export Control Reform Act and study whether U.S. export control authority should be moved to a different agency.
The Bureau of Industry and Security sent a final rule for interagency review that would revise the Unverified List. Sent for review Sept. 29, the rule would also clarify activities and criteria that could lead to additions to the Entity List.
The U.S. last week announced a host of new sanctions and export controls against Russia, targeting Russian defense and technology companies, Russian government officials and various suppliers for supporting the country's military. The measures include hundreds of new designations and 57 additions to the Entity List, most of which will be subject to certain foreign direct product rule restrictions.
The U.S. and its allies should modernize the way they approach export controls and reboot regimes that have so far failed to keep China from acquiring sensitive technologies, said Mark Hewitt, Lockheed Martin’s vice president for corporate strategy. Martin, speaking during a Sept. 27 defense industry conference hosted by IDEEA, said many current export regimes are outdated.
More exporters should make use of License Exception STA (Strategic Trade Authorization), which could reduce workload for the government and allow certain exports to move faster, officials from the Commerce and Defense departments said. “Frankly, it's not utilized as much as we would like it to be utilized,” Matt Borman, an official with Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security, said during a Sept. 27 defense industry conference hosted by IDEEA. “To anyone who's considering STA-eligible exports, please, please use them as opposed to having your U.S. supplier come in and go through the traditional licensing process.”
The Bureau of Industry and Security was “overwhelmed” with advisory opinion requests after issuing its 2020 rules creating military end-user regulations and an MEU list (see 2004270027), said Matt Borman, deputy assistant secretary for export administration, speaking during a Sept. 27 defense industry conference hosted by IDEEA. He said the agency was “happy” to help companies that had questions about the rule, but the process was time-consuming. “It took us a while,” Borman said. “But I think we're through that backlog” now.
The U.S. imposed new sanctions against Russia Sept. 30 and announced it will add 57 entities to the Entity List for supporting Russia's military amid its war in Ukraine. The sanctions target members of Russia’s military-industrial complex, including various technology and defense firms, two of Russia's international suppliers and members of Russia’s legislature, the Treasury Department said. The Entity List additions, which BIS said will take effect Sept. 30, target parties that have sought to supply Russia’s military with controlled U.S. items or are involved in the country’s quantum computing industry, the Bureau of Industry and Security said in an emailed news release. Fifty of the 57 newly added entities will be subject to BIS’ Russia/Belarus Military End User Foreign Direct Product Rule, which will limit their ability to acquire certain foreign-produced goods made by or with U.S.-origin items.