The U.S. this week sanctioned three Iranian nationals and one entity for their ties to Iran’s Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research, which works on nuclear weapons projects. The designations target Sayyed Mohammad Reza Seddighi Saber, Ahmad Haghighat Talab and Mohammad Reza Mehdipur along with the entity Fuya Pars Prospective Technologists.
The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls this month updated its list of commodity jurisdiction determinations for items and services controlled under the U.S. Munitions List. The new determinations cover certain amplifiers, drones, parts related to fuel tanks, freight advisory services, transceivers, helicopter training, engines and more. DDTC also said some of the items should be classified by the Bureau of Industry and Security under the Export Administration Regulations as EAR99 or other specific Export Control Classification Numbers.
Nature’s Sunshine Products, a dietary supplement manufacturer headquartered in Utah, may have violated U.S. sanctions and export controls, it disclosed this month.
The Bureau of Industry and Security officially announced May 13 that it plans to rescind the Biden administration’s AI diffusion export control rule and issue a “replacement rule in the future.” BIS enforcement officials won't be enforcing the Biden-era rule, the agency said, which was scheduled to take effect May 15. The agency said it plans to publish a formal rescission notice in the Federal Register.
President Donald Trump said the U.S. is considering lifting sanctions against Syria to help give the Syrian people a “fresh start” following last year’s fall of the Bashar Assad regime.
Beijing has launched a "special operation" to crack down on illegal exports of critical minerals, such as gallium, germanium, antimony, tungsten and other rare earths, according to an unofficial translation of a May 9 Ministry of Commerce notice. The ministry said China's Office of the National Export Control Coordination Mechanism gathered agencies for a meeting to discuss how they can better stop export smuggling, specifically pointing to "overseas entities" that "have colluded with domestic illegal personnel" to evade Chinese export controls.
Reps. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y., and Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., reintroduced a bill late last month that would restrict exports of electronic waste, such as old cell phones and computers. The legislation seeks to prevent such waste from being sent to countries that would discard the materials in an environmentally harmful way or turn them into counterfeit electronics that would then be re-sold. The Secure E-Waste Export and Recycling Act (SEERA), which was previously re-introduced in the last Congress, was referred to the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
Rep. Andrew Ogles, R-Tenn., introduced a bill May 8 that would require a license requirements exception for certain advanced integrated circuits exports to Israel. The legislation was referred to the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Ogles’ office did not respond to a request for more information.
Reps. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., and Jimmy Panetta, D-Calif., introduced a bill May 7 that would require the administration to write a report to Congress on Hong Kong’s role in export control and sanctions evasion. The Stop Corrupt Communist Party Money Laundering Act, or Stop CCP Money Laundering Act, also would direct the Treasury Department to determine whether Hong Kong is a jurisdiction of primary money laundering concern. The bill, which was referred to the House Financial Services and Foreign Affairs committees, is a companion to legislation that Sens. John Curtis, R-Utah, and Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., introduced in April (see 2504080060).
The Swiss president told reporters in Bern that her country would put together a letter of intent within two weeks, in the hopes of reaching an "agreement in principle" with the U.S., like the U.K. did (see 2505080033), and thereby avoid 31% reciprocal tariffs set to begin July 9.