BIS Amends Export Administration Regulations to Reflect Lifting of Arms Embargoes

The Bureau of Industry and Security amended the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to reflect discontinued arms embargoes against the Ivory Coast and Liberia, and implement other changes with regard to other arms and materiel sales to Sri Lanka and Vietnam, BIS said in a final rule (here). The rule also updates the EAR to recognize India as a member of the intergovernmental Missile Technology Control Regime. Specifically, BIS removed the Ivory Coast and Liberia from its Country Group D:5, “U.S. Arms Embargoed Countries,” following the termination of arms embargoes directed by United Nations Security Council resolutions earlier this year, BIS said. The final rule also erases Vietnam from Country Group D:5, after Secretary of State John Kerry in May terminated his department’s policy of banning the sale or transfer of lethal weapons to the country (see 1605270056). The final rule also removed Sri Lanka from Country Group D:5, after defense licensing restrictions laid out in the fiscal year 2015 Consolidated Appropriations Act and previous spending bills were not carried forward in fiscal 2016 appropriations legislation. The State Department Directorate of Defense Trade Controls in May said it will review license applications to export or temporarily import defense articles to and from Sri Lanka under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations on a case-by-case basis (see 1605040057).