The Bureau of Industry and Security added eight entities to the Entity List for their involvement in nuclear proliferation activities and issued several other revisions, one correction and one removal from the Entity List and Military End User List. The eight entities, located in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates, include laboratory equipment providers, engineering companies and electronics makers. They will face a license requirement for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, and BIS will impose a license review policy of presumption of denial. No license exceptions will be available. The changes take effect June 1.
Export controls over 3D-printed guns were moved from the Commerce Department to the State Department following a court’s decision this week to officially waive a preliminary injunction that had blocked the transfer (see 2105030021).
The Bureau of Industry and Security added eight entities to the Entity List for their involvement in nuclear proliferation activities. The entities, located in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates, will face a license requirement for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, and BIS will impose a license review policy of presumption of denial.
The Bureau of Industry and Security revoked export privileges for an Iranian businessman for illegally exporting carbon fiber from the U.S. to Iran, BIS said in a May 24 order. Behzad Pourghannad was convicted Nov. 12, 2019, for violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act after he worked with others to export the carbon fiber to Iran from third countries using falsified documents and front companies (see 1911150023). Pourghannad was sentenced to 20 months in prison and a $100 fine. BIS also revoked his export privileges for 10 years from the date of his conviction, and revoked any BIS-issued licenses in which he had an interest at the time of his conviction.
Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., introduced an amendment May 25 to the Endless Frontier Act that would withhold the additional funding in the bill until the Commerce Department “completes the identification of emerging and foundational technologies as required under section 1758(a) of the Export Control Reform Act.” The Bureau of Industry and Security has identified dozens of emerging technologies but has not identified any foundational technologies (see 2104070026).
U.S. companies that sell defense products or services to foreign countries or entities must report all offsets agreements greater than $5 million to the Bureau of Industry and Security by June 15, the agency said in a May 25 notice. Companies also must report information on offsets transactions completed “in performance of existing offsets commitments for which offsets credit” of $250,000 or more “has been claimed from the foreign representative,” the notice said. Commerce is asking for reports of offsets agreements that took place during the 2020 calendar year.
The Semiconductor Industry Association hired Meghan Biery, previously the senior national security policy adviser at the Bureau of Industry and Security, as director of global technology and security policy, the SIA said in a May 24 news release. “A seasoned policy practitioner with high-level experience in technology security, export control, and related issues, Meghan Biery will be a strong and capable advocate for our industry’s interests in Washington and around the world," SIA CEO John Neuffer said.
The State Department is preparing to amend the U.S. Munitions List to update export controls surrounding weapons, spacecraft and military electronics, according to a senior State Department official. The agency also plans to issue another extension to allow employees involved in International Traffic in Arms Regulations-related activity to work remotely and is inching closer to publishing its first ITAR reorganization rule, said Mike Miller, the State Department’s deputy assistant secretary for defense trade in the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs.
China’s latest export control compliance guidelines closely mirror U.S. guidance and provide significant new insight into how the country will interpret its export control law (ECL) (see 2011030033 and 2010190033), law firms said. Companies operating in China may find that their U.S. compliance programs translate well to China’s rules, the firms said, which now include guidance for risk assessments, reporting procedures and audits.
The Bureau of Industry and Security issued more than $100,000 in combined penalties against two companies for illegally exporting thousands of dollars worth of goods to Iran, Russia and Ukraine. BIS imposed a $60,000 fine and temporarily denied the export privileges for Kleiss & Co., a Netherlands-based company that BIS said illegally shipped “extruded butyl sealants” from the U.S. to Iran. The agency also fined Texas-based TeleDynamics $55,000 for illegally exporting rifle scopes from the U.S. to Russia and Ukraine.