The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned Ryan James Wedding, a former Olympic snowboarder for Canada, for being an "extremely violent criminal" believed to be responsible for the killing of people abroad and for involvement in drug trafficking and "other serious criminal activities." OFAC said Wedding is on the FBI's 10 most wanted list and is "hiding" in Mexico.
A potential buyer of Russian energy firm Lukoil's international business will need to obtain a separate authorization from the Office of Foreign Assets Control -- aside from the agency's existing general license for the firm -- to complete the sale, OFAC said in a new FAQ this week.
Longtime senior Bureau of Industry and Security official Kevin Kurland is leaving the agency next month, multiple people familiar with the matter said. A BIS official said Kurland informed senior agency staff this week that he plans to retire from government before the end of the year.
The notion that the U.S. should continue to sell advanced chips to China to keep the country “hooked” on American semiconductor technology is “deeply misguided,” wrote Ryan Fedasiuk, a fellow with the American Enterprise Institute, in a post for the think tank last week.
A group representing European academia and researchers is studying whether AI models can help researchers more easily determine whether their work is subject to EU export controls.
A senior Wassenaar Arrangement official pushed back on criticism against the multilateral export control body, saying it continues to function and serve as an important forum for members despite Russia’s inclusion.
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Banks and logistics providers are more frequently asking exporters about their compliance programs to certify that the goods they’re helping to move don’t violate any trade laws, said Eva Lakova, a director for sanctions and export controls with PricewaterhouseCoopers.
The U.S. appeared to have underestimated or not understood the impact of the Bureau of Industry and Security 50% rule, especially the volume of license applications the agency was set to receive, said Thea Kendler, former BIS assistant secretary for export administration.
The U.S. government’s “economic statecraft” tools, including export controls and sanctions, are “fragmented” across multiple agencies, and Congress should consider consolidating them into a single entity to increase coordination, focus and accountability, the congressionally mandated U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission said in its new 2025 annual report.