The Bureau of Industry and Security June 6 charged Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich with violating U.S. export controls by exporting U.S.-origin aircraft to Russia without the required licenses (see 2202240069). BIS said Abramovich’s planes flew to and from Russia in March, days after the agency announced new export controls on Russia-related aircraft.
The Bureau of Industry and Security made several changes, corrections and clarifications to its export regulations and added a host of new Russian and Belarusian entities to its Entity List, it said in notices. One change adds a license requirement for certain medicine and food shipments to the two countries, and another change allows BIS to publicize export enforcement charging letters before a case is resolved.
The U.S. on June 2 issued another round of Russia sanctions, targeting additional Russian oligarchs and elites close to Russia President Vladimir Putin. The sanctions also targeted Russian government officials and business leaders, the luxury property of elites, and luxury asset management and service companies key to Russian attempts to evade sanctions.
The U.S. and South Korea may have to build more trust if they want to effectively coordinate on technology competition issues, experts said during a June 2 event hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Although the May meeting between President Joe Biden and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was a good first step, speakers said the two sides will likely face challenges implementing some of their goals, including an improved trade and technology partnership.
The U.S. and the EU should focus export control efforts under the Trade and Technology Council (see 2205160033) around end-use and end-user controls, rather than on a technology’s “capabilities,” industry told the EU in comments released May 31. Trade groups also said the U.S. and the EU should better harmonize their restrictions around “intangible” transfers, which have been implemented differently and have caused confusion among companies.
Commissioner Rebeccca Dye of the Federal Maritime Commission this week released the final report stemming from a two-year investigation of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the international ocean freight delivery system, which includes a dozen new recommendations to address supply chain and maritime logistics issues. The report, previewed by Dye last month (see 2205180056), has recommendations for mandatory FMC compliance officers, a clearer process for returning containers and a new investigation into carrier charges assessed through tariffs.
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The EU agreed to a partial ban on Russian oil ahead of a sixth sanctions package on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. The ban applies to the purchase of crude oil and petroleum products from Russia delivered to EU member states by sea. A temporary exclusion applies to crude shipped via pipeline. European Council President Charles Michel confirmed the agreement on a partial ban on Russian oil in a May 30 tweet following a summit in Brussels. "This immediately covers more than 2/3 of oil imports from Russia, cutting a huge source of financing for its war machine," the tweet said.
The Bureau of Industry and Security soon will introduce a congressional notification requirement for certain firearm exports, the agency said in a final rule. The change, effective July 18, will add a new section to the Export Administration Regulations that will require congressional reporting for certain semiautomatic firearms shipments valued at $4 million or more and destined to certain countries. The requirement will apply to certain guns whose export control authority was transferred from the State Department to the Commerce Department in 2020 (see 2001170030).
Increasing Chinese investments in U.S. agriculture could reduce China’s need for American exports and give Beijing “undue leverage over U.S. supply chains,” the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission said in a report last week. The U.S. may need to rethink or improve how it uses the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. to better catch those investments, the commission said, which may be harming U.S. economic and national security.