The Trump administration has assembled a team to implement President Donald Trump’s recent order to remove sanctions on Syria, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said May 22.
The U.S. is continuing to push Malaysia to strengthen its guardrails around sensitive American technologies at risk of being diverted to China, a top Malaysian trade official said this week. He also acknowledged that Malaysia and other Asian countries could soon be pressured to choose between either partnering economically with Washington or Beijing.
The Federal Maritime Commission this week launched an investigation on whether the vessel flagging laws, regulations or practices of foreign countries or shipowners, including the use of flags of convenience, are creating “unfavorable shipping conditions in the foreign trade of the United States.” The FMC said May 21 that its “nonadjudicatory” investigation will look into whether those practices or laws are violating U.S. shipping regulations, specifically referring to foreign countries that lower their shipping standards or ease “compliance requirements to gain a potential competitive edge” on vessels from other nations.
The EU on May 21 opened an antidumping duty investigation on passenger car and light truck tires from China, the European Commission announced. The commission said the investigation will be concluded within 14 months and that provisional antidumping duties may be imposed within eight months if dumping and injury to the EU industry are found. The bloc currently has AD and countervailing duties in place on imports of tires for buses and trucks from China.
The U.K.’s Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation will begin accepting formal whistleblower disclosures June 26, the agency announced this week. OTSI will accept reports about a person or business “you think is committing a breach of trade sanctions that are implemented and enforced by” the agency. OTSI, a new agency launched in October, oversees and enforces trade restrictions for controlled goods and services moving or being provided outside the U.K. (see 2502140007, 2410100010, 2409130015 and 2502040042).
The State Department approved a possible $100 million military sale to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said May 20. The sale includes "AW-119Kx helicopters" and related equipment, and the principal contractor will be Leonardo Helicopters U.S./AgustaWestland Philadelphia Corp.
The Trump administration is considering designating the Taliban a foreign terrorist organization to pressure the Afghan ruling group to be more helpful in countering terrorist entities within Afghanistan, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said May 21.
Eight Senate Democrats, including Senate Banking Committee ranking member Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., urged the Trump administration May 19 to reconsider its AI deals with the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, saying the agreements lack guardrails to prevent the diversion of U.S. technology to China.
House Select Committee on China Chairman John Moolenaar, R-Mich., and Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., urged the Trump administration May 19 to consider adding Chinese electric vehicle charging company Autel Energy to the Commerce Department’s Entity List and the Defense Department’s Section 1260H list of Chinese military companies.
The EU is lifting its remaining sanctions against Syria, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said this week.