Multiple Bureau of Industry and Security employees working for the agency's Western regional office were recently laid off, two people with knowledge of the situation told Export Compliance Daily. The employees, who received "reduction-in-force" notices, were mostly export control analysts, compliance specialists and outreach specialists. A BIS spokesperson didn't respond to a request for comment.
Maura Rezendes, former head of the sanctions team at A&O Shearman, has joined Sidley as a partner in the global arbitration, trade and advocacy practice, the firm announced last week. Rezendes' practice centers on "regulatory compliance advice and counseling, transactional support, investigations and enforcement" of economic sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control.
The EU on Oct. 16 issued updated FAQs about its dual-use export control regulations and its import ban on refined petroleum products that contain Russian crude oil. The export control FAQs cover due diligence and compliance obligations for EU exporters, as well as other guidance to help companies comply with the rules. The Russia oil FAQs outline the circumstances under which EU companies need to carry out "enhanced" due diligence to make sure an imported refined oil product doesn't contain Russia-origin oil.
The EU continued to largely approve most foreign direct investment deals submitted to its investment review cooperation mechanism, the European Commission said in its annual report on FDI, released this week.
Vietnam adopted new dual-use export control regulations Oct. 10, setting rules for the "management of export, temporary import for re-export, transshipment" and "transit of strategic commercial goods," according to an unofficial translation. The regulations outline export licensing procedures for shipments of controlled items and say exporters moving those goods are "encouraged to develop and implement an Internal Compliance Program," including procedures for reviewing end users and uses, training employees and keeping records.
Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., urged the Treasury Department Oct. 15 to use the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. to review reports that China-based investors are buying Southern California land ravaged by January wildfires.
A bipartisan group of 27 House members, including House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Emeritus Michael McCaul, R-Texas, called on President Donald Trump Oct. 17 to impose “forceful new joint sanctions” on Russia and countries that buy its oil, to pressure Moscow to negotiate a peace deal with Ukraine.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned two individuals Oct. 17 for their affiliation with Viv Ansanm, a Haitian gang coalition that the agency said “contributes to the violence and instability within Haiti.”
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Oct. 17 removed four Bosnia and Herzegovina nationals from its Specially Designated Nationals List: Jelena Pajic Bastinac, Danijel Dragicevic, Dijana Milankovic and Goran Rakovic. The agency didn’t release more information. The four individuals were sanctioned during the Biden administration for undermining the 1995 peace deal that ended the Bosnian War (see 2501170071 and 2403130032).
A new draft report issued this month from the nonprofit Law Reform Institute examines how frontier AI systems may soon be able to create instructions, designs and code subject to U.S. export controls and whether the U.S. will need to restrict this through new controls on AI developers.