Australia’s Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment is experiencing delays processing various food-related import documents, including documents related to inspection bookings and the issuance of post-treatment releases, according to a Feb. 8 alert from C.H. Robinson. The agency said it is seeing “unprecedented demand” for certain services and said “all efforts are being made to manage increased workloads.” To lessen the delays, Australia said it is diverting resources, returning certain staff to the office from remote work and fast-tracking the training of “Imported Food Assessment officers.” The agency also said it is prioritizing clients who have waited in the services queue the longest and urged clients to submit their documents “well in advance of arrival of the goods,” avoid submitting unnecessary documents and to make sure all their information is accurate. “There are a number of other medium/longer term initiatives underway, however we recognise these larger reforms will not address the immediate challenges we are experiencing,” Australia said.

The State Department's Defense Security Cooperation Agency approved potential military sales to Chile and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, DSCA said Feb. 5. The sale to Chile includes $85 million worth of “Standard Missile-2 (SM-2) Block IIIA Missiles” and related equipment. The principal contractor will be Raytheon Missiles and Defense. The sale to NATO’s Communications and Information Agency includes about $65 million for “UHF SATCOM Radio Systems” and related equipment. Collins Aerospace will be the prime contractor.

The Biden administration announced a slew of appointments to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative that do not require Senate confirmation, allowing the agency to get its agenda underway as U.S. trade representative nominee Katherine Tai awaits a hearing and a floor vote.

Fourteen senators from both sides of the aisle urged the State Department to increase sanctions pressure on Myanmar by targeting all senior officials, military officials and companies affiliated with the military-led coup last week. The U.S. not only should target leaders, the senators said in a Feb. 5 letter, but also consider sanctioning “companies and conglomerates” controlled by the military. “There is no reason to believe Burma’s military leaders will return the country to democratic rule without strong and sustained international pressure,” the senators said, led by Jim Risch, R-Idaho, and Bob Menendez, D-N.J., the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's top members. Coordinate sanctions with allies “as soon as possible” and convince the United Nations to investigate human rights violations related to the coup, the letter said. “Only strong, sustained, and multilateral pressure is likely to change the behavior” of Myanmar’s military, the senators wrote.

The State Department will look to “immediately and robustly” reengage with the United Nations’ Human Rights Council after the Trump administration withdrew from the body in 2018, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a Feb. 8 statement. The council is “flawed,” but the U.S. can better push for change from within, he said. The UNHRC, which can make international sanctions recommendations, can help promote freedom and human rights around the world, Blinken said, and lead to more effective multilateral measures. He said the U.S. will return to the council in the “immediate term” as an observer with the ability to speak during negotiations and partner with other members to introduce resolutions. “The best way to improve the Council is to engage with it and its members in a principled fashion,” he said. “We strongly believe that when the United States engages constructively with the Council, in concert with our allies and friends, positive change is within reach.”

The Bureau of Industry and Security on Feb. 4 posted a new video providing guidance on applying for a license to export biological items. The roughly 10-minute video illustrates how to determine license requirements, use licensing exceptions and apply for licenses for biological items subject to the Export Administration Regulations.

A panel of scholars and a former general consul in Hong Kong agreed that the Biden administration is likely to place more emphasis on export controls and industrial policy to support domestic semiconductor production, and less on the trade deficit and tariffs, even as the new president has to decide what to do about Section 301 tariffs at some point. They were speaking on a virtual panel about U.S.-China relations hosted by the Washington International Trade Association on Feb. 8.

Industry should expect the Biden administration’s review of Trump-era China policies -- including export controls and licensing decisions -- to take two to three months, trade lawyer Peter Lichtenbaum said. He also said the Bureau of Industry and Security will continue to adhere to the Trump administration's strict Huawei licensing policy until it’s changed by incoming political appointees, which has not yet happened.

The White House announced its withdrawals of some nominations left over from the Trump administration. Those include the Jan. 3 nomination of Joseph Barloon, former general counsel at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, for a judge's seat on the Court of International Trade. He was first nominated in October 2020, then renominated because all nominations in front of the Senate expired with the seating of the new Congress in January. Also withdrawn was the Jan. 6 nomination of William Kimmitt, a former counselor to the USTR, to fill a vacancy on the International Trade Commission. He was first nominated in December 2020.

South Korea Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee dropped her candidacy for World Trade Organization director-general, clearing a path for Nigeria's Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala to be elected. Announcing her decision at a Feb. 5 briefing in Seoul, Yoo said it was made in coordination with the U.S. as a way to reach a consensus among WTO members on the one candidate who will lead the organization, according to a report in The Korea Herald.