In one of its first major decisions to reverse Trump administration-imposed sanctions, the State Department will revoke its terrorism designation of Ansarallah Feb. 16. The move, which reverses the designation of the Yemen-based group also known as Houthis as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, came after the State Department said it was reviewing the humanitarian implications of the designations. The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control in January issued several general licenses and frequently asked questions to clarify that the sanctions wouldn't impact humanitarian exports to Yemen, including those sent by international organizations (see 2101190016 and 2101250043), but the State Department said the designation could still hamper some aid delivery.
Semiconductor firms are hoping to convince the Biden administration to reverse some export restrictions against Huawei as the new administration undergoes a review of China-related policies, Reuters reported Feb. 11. The companies believe significant changes are unlikely but hope to appeal to U.S. interagency panels that at least some restrictions should be lifted, the report said. The Commerce Department, which oversees the restrictions, didn’t comment. In its final weeks in office, the Trump administration issued a flurry of license denials for exports to Huawei after months of inaction on the applications, partly caused by COVID-19 pandemic-related delays (see 2101150062). Export control lawyers say they have not yet seen a shift in the Huawei licensing policy under President Joe Biden (see 2102080046).
As emerging technologies develop, governments need to expand their outreach practices beyond traditional exporters and manufacturers and also focus on universities, research institutes and investors, a February Strategic Trade Research Institute report advised. Government outreach efforts that are not modernized won’t “yield the desired compliance outcome,” the report said.
Among the potential candidates to head the Bureau of Industry and Security is James Mulvenon, a Chinese technology expert at the aerospace company SOS International, the Wall Street Journal reported Feb. 11. Mulvenon is expected to be considered for the undersecretary role along with Kevin Wolf (see 2102090060), an export controls lawyer and a former BIS official, and could bring a more hard-line stance on U.S. technology exports to China, the report said.
Although the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control saw a decrease in total sanctions settlements last year, the agency increased its output of sanctions guidance and advisories, shedding more light on OFAC’s compliance expectations, sanctions lawyers said. Lawyers also said the agency flexed its enforcement jurisdiction by pursuing penalties against a variety of industries beyond large commercial banks, a trend that should continue this year.
Andrea Delisi, former assistant chief counsel in the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control, joined Morrison & Foerster in its National Security and Global Risk + Crisis Management groups, the firm announced Feb. 10. She previously advised OFAC on legal issues including the office's economic sanctions programs involving Venezuela, Syria, Iran, human rights, corruption and terrorism.
The Biden administration is looking to place new export controls on sensitive technologies destined for China, according to a Feb. 10 Reuters report, continuing a trend of technology controls begun under the Trump administration. But the U.S. hopes to better coordinate with allies on those controls instead of imposing unilateral restrictions that may damage the competitiveness of U.S. companies, the report said. A senior administration official told Reuters the U.S. is still reviewing Trump-era policies toward China and there may be areas of “continuity” on certain issues. “One of them is to ensure that we are not supplying highly sensitive technology that can advance China’s military capabilities. We will be bearing down on that,” the official said. The White House didn’t comment.
The Biden administration should pursue more multilateral engagement on export controls and continue to protect sensitive U.S. technologies, the American Leadership Initiative said in a Feb. 11 summary of an upcoming report. The ALI said the White House should establish an Office of Global Digital Policy, which would dedicate resources toward federal investment in research and development, promote exports and “protect key technologies.” The office, along with a “multipronged series of investment and export controls,” will help U.S. companies better compete with Chinese technology firms that benefit from government subsidies, the ALI said.
The U.S. on Feb. 11 announced sanctions and export controls targeting the Myanmar military, defense ministry and security services after it carried out a coup earlier this month (see 2102100060). The White House also issued an executive order outlining a new Myanmar sanctions regime and said more restrictions will be imposed “in the coming days.”
CBP is now operating under an “informed compliance umbrella” related to penalties over faulty “transportation data” included on Automated Export System filings, said Jim Swanson, director of the Cargo and Security Controls Division, for Cargo and Conveyance Security, CBP Office of Field Operations. Swanson, who spoke Feb. 10 during a National Association of Foreign-Trade Zones virtual conference, mentioned discrepancies with filed dates and ports as things CBP would like to see corrected rather than penalized. A set of penalty mitigation guidelines for failure to comply with Foreign Trade Regulations was updated in September.