A lawsuit filed by 20 states to block the transfer of export controls over firearms from the State Department to the Commerce Department is unfounded, the State Department said, adding that the states don’t understand the International Traffic in Arms Regulations and the Export Administration Regulations. The “plaintiffs are simply wrong,” the State Department said in a Feb. 24 court filing. “Several basic misunderstandings about how the respective regimes operate negate the Plaintiffs’ claims and any basis for preliminary injunctive relief.”
China recently introduced an export value-added tax refund rate of 13% for bunkering oil on international navigation ships in its costal ports, according to a Feb. 26 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The rate, which took effect Feb. 1, will allow ships to apply for export VAT refunds through export declarations when they enter “export-supervised warehouses to refuel,” the report said.
Shanghai recently introduced nearly 30 policy measures to support trade and companies as the country battles the coronavirus outbreak, according to a Feb. 27 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The measures, which will remain in effect until three months after the outbreak ends, will provide manufacturers with a lump sum pre-tax deduction for certain equipment purchases and provide “preferential loans” to companies that produce, transport and sell infection prevention supplies, the report said. In addition, suppliers and other companies that deal in prevention supplies will be “given support” to increase production and imports, the HKTDC said.
The Defense Department’s Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency released its annual report on foreign attempts to target U.S. technologies, according to a Feb. 25 notice. The report details the cleared industry’s reporting of “suspicious contact” that represents “potential foreign intelligence entities attempts” to illegally acquire U.S. technologies. The report details attempts to acquire U.S. electronics, aeronautic systems, computers, and more, breaking down attempts by geographic region.
A Swiss telecommunications and information technology organization agreed to pay nearly $8 million for violations of U.S. terrorism sanctions, the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said in a Feb. 26 notice. The organization, Société Internationale de Télécommunications Aéronautiques (SITA), committed more than 9,000 violations of the Global Terrorism Sanctions Regulations when it provided U.S.-origin services and software to airlines designated by OFAC.
During a hearing that House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal, D-Mass., said was designed to test President Donald Trump's claim that the phase one agreement with China is a “tremendous win for the American people,” most of what was revealed was that Democrats are skeptical of the purchase promises and likelihood of success of further negotiations, and Republicans admire Trump's confrontation of China.
CBP designated the Port of Ysleta, in El Paso, Texas, as port code 2401, the agency said in a Feb. 25 CSMS message. Starting on March 1, “all E-manifests making arrival into the U.S. via the Port of Ysleta are required to use port code 2401,” it said. But “Entry and Entry Summary transmissions will continue to utilize the port code 2402 (El Paso), as 2402 will be the Port of Entry for 2401,” it said. “For cargo arriving at Ysleta (2401) from Mexico and moving onward, the in-bond origination port will be 2401.”
The U.S. renewed sanctions on people and entities that “undermine democratic processes” in Ukraine, according to a Feb. 25 news release from the White House. The sanctions, first issued under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act in 2014, will continue for one year after March 6, 2020, the White House said.
The United Nations Security Council added two entries to its ISIL (Da’esh) and al-Qaida Sanctions List, according to a Feb. 23 news release. The sanctions target two ISIS affiliates: the Islamic State West Africa Province and the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara. The State Department said it “welcomes” the UNSC sanctions of the two affiliates, which are “responsible for killing hundreds of innocent civilians.” The two entities were sanctioned by the U.S. in 2018.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned three Lebanon-based officials and 12 Lebanon-based entities linked to the Martyrs Foundation, which is part of Hizballah’s support network, Treasury said in a Feb. 26 press release. The designations include Atlas Holding, a company owned by the Martyrs Foundation, senior Atlas official Kassem Mohamad Ali Bazzi and 10 Atlas-affiliated companies, Treasury said. The companies operate in Lebanon’s fuel, pharmaceuticals, tourism and clothing sectors.