The congressionally mandated National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology recommended in a report this month that lawmakers pass legislation to prevent U.S. outbound investment from supporting China’s development of biotechnology that could harm national security.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Stuart Young that he will work very closely with Young's administration "to find a solution that achieves U.S. objectives regarding Venezuela without harming Trinidad and Tobago."

The Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned Iranian national and liquified petroleum gas (LPG) magnate Seyed Asadoollah Emamjomeh and his corporate network April 22, saying they shipped hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Iranian LPG and crude oil to foreign markets, which generated revenue for Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs and terrorism proxies.

The Trump administration hasn't yet indicated what it wants to do about the roughly $300 billion in Russian assets that the U.S. and its allies froze after Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the Brookings Institution said in a commentary April 16.

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The Bureau of Industry and Security's recent rules that expanded foreign direct product rule restrictions over chip equipment (see 2412020016) and set new foundry due diligence rules (see 2501150040) are already hurting U.S. companies, the U.S.-China Business Council said, including by incentivizing foreign firms to design U.S.-origin goods out of their chip supply chains.

Several trade groups representing shippers, the maritime industry and U.S. ports criticized the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative's Section 301 determination last week calling for a phased-in approach to levy fees on foreign-built vessels and car-carrying vessels docking at U.S. ports as part of a broader push to build and bolster an American shipbuilding industry (see 2504180018).

China plans to sanction U.S. lawmakers, “officials” and heads of non-governmental organizations in response to the State Department’s sanctioning of six Hong Kong government and police officials, China Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said April 21 at a regular press conference, according to a translation the ministry provided in English.

President Donald Trump criticized business officials who have said his tariffs actions are damaging, bragged about countries and executives asking for breaks, and made a list of non-tariff cheating he wants countries to end, all on social media over the weekend.

A purported draft executive order to reorganize the State Department that served as the basis for a New York Times article is a "fake document,” an agency spokesperson said in an email April 21.