President Barack Obama gave the Treasury Department, in consultation with the Attorney General and Secretary of State, wide-ranging authority to sanction individuals who engaged in cyber threats to U.S. infrastructure and trade secrets, as part of an April 1 executive order (here). The order “augments” the U.S. ability to combat those and other “malicious” activities, the White House said in a fact sheet (here).

President Barack Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will discuss outstanding issues in bilateral Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations during a summit in Washington on April 28, the White House said in a statement on March 23 (here). U.S. trade officials and lawmakers say Japan still needs to concede more market access for agricultural and automotive goods for the U.S. to agree to a final package (see 1502050019).

President Barack Obama nominated Chad Dickerson, Gary Hirshberg and Dennis Williams to serve on the administration’s advisory committee for trade policy and negotiations (here). Dickerson is CEO of Etsy, Hirshberg is chairman of Stonyfield Farm and Dennis Williams is president of the United Automobile Workers.

President Barack Obama plans to discuss the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi during a Washington summit on April 17, said the White House (here). European Council President Donald Tusk urged more TTIP progress in 2015 before a meeting with Obama one week ago (see 1503100021).

President Barack Obama ramped up efforts to address human rights abuses in Venezuela on March 9 by issuing an executive order to sanction top Venezuelan military and police officials. The Venezuelan government’s attacks on press freedom and ongoing persecution of political dissidents, among other rights violations, constitute an “unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States,” said Obama in the executive order (here). The U.S. and other governments accuse Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro regime of violating human rights by continuing to crack down on political opposition in the country (here).

The European Union is focused on making progress in 2015 on Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership talks, said European Council President Donald Tusk in March 9 remarks before a sit-down with President Barack Obama (here). The two sides need to “convince our public opinion on both sides of the Atlantic” in order to lock down a TTIP pact that will boost jobs and strengthen political security for the U.S. and EU, said Tusk, who described the agreement as a “good thing.” The EU agricultural commissioner also called for TTIP progress in 2015 in mid-February comments to reporters (see 1502190021).

President Barack Obama signed legislation into law on March 4 to fund CBP and the rest of the Department of Homeland Security through Sept. 30. The bill, HR-240, originally contained provisions to obstruct implementation of Obama's executive action on immigration, but, after weeks of back and forth, both chambers of Congress stripped the immigration language from the measure. The House passed the "clean" DHS funding bill on March 3 (see 1503030070).

Guatemala and Honduras will put into force their Customs Union by the end of 2015, the White House said in a March 3 statement that followed Vice President Joe Biden’s two-day trip to Guatemala City (here). Biden met with the presidents of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. The U.S. is partnering with those countries, along with the Inter-American Development Bank, to implement the Plan of the Alliance for Prosperity in the Northern Triangle (here). That pact focuses on security and economic improvements in the three Central American countries. The three presidents also pledged to put into force a "'single window' for foreign investors," the White House said, while noting a number of other agreements struck during the Biden summit.

Members of the Technology CEO Council and President Barack Obama agree on the importance of Trade Promotion Authority, the White House said in a March 2 statement (here), following a meeting between the council and Obama. "Growing U.S. exports to support new opportunities for our workers and businesses is a top priority for the President and the members of the Council, who reiterated their commitment to building bipartisan support for Trade Promotion Authority," said the White House. Many observers expected lawmakers to introduce TPA legislation in recent days, but a spat between Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and ranking member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., continues to prevent committee progress on the trade front (see 1502250075). Obama met with the council, alongside senior advisor Valerie Jarrett, senior economic advisor Jeff Zients and White House Chief Technology Officer Megan Smith, the White House said. On behalf of the council, CEO’s from Dell, Qualcomm and other companies attended the meeting.

President Barack Obama will sit down with European Council President Donald Tusk on March 9 to discuss the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, among other policies, the White House announced in recent days (here). The European Union agriculture commissioner recently called for conclusion to TTIP talks by early 2016 (see 1502190021), and top officials from both sides of the Atlantic have urged negotiators to close gaps this year (see 1502080002).