Five senators introduced a bill to strengthen export controls on certain unmanned aircraft less than a month after the State Department loosened them. The measure, introduced Aug. 6, would block exports of certain drones to all countries except NATO members, Australia, Israel, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea. The senators said the legislation is designed to restrict sales to hostile Middle East countries, such as Saudi Arabia.
The U.S. should continue to pursue sanctions on China and encourage allies to impose their own restrictions for the recent arrests of pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong, a bipartisan group of lawmakers said. In an Aug. 10 statement, commissioners of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, including CECC Chair Rep. James McGovern, D-Mass., and Co-Chair Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said the United Nations Security Council should convene an “urgent meeting” to discuss Hong Kong’s so-called national security law (see 2008070039).
The United Kingdom’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation on Aug. 11 corrected 20 listings under its Guinea-Bissau sanctions and 14 listings under its Burma sanctions. The corrections add and delete identifying information for the listings, which remain subject to asset freezes.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control issued guidance on its Sudan program and Darfur sanctions and removed and revised Sudan-related FAQs. The guidance, issued Aug. 11, clarifies that U.S. people and companies are no longer subject to OFAC’s Sudanese Sanctions Regulations but may be designated under the agency’s Darfur sanctions or captured by Commerce Department export controls.
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The State Department’s 2019 emergency arms sales to Persian Gulf countries (see 1907150033 and 1907300027) did not violate export control laws, but the agency failed to “fully assess risks” the weapons could lead to “civilian casualties” and other “legal concerns,” the Office of Inspector General said in an Aug. 11 report. The report was released days after House and Senate Democratic leaders subpoenaed four State Department officials and accused the agency of stonewalling congressional oversight of the emergency transfers and the firing of former department Inspector General Steve Linick (see 2008030046).
The United Kingdom’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation amended six entries under its Central African Republic sanctions regime, an Aug. 10 notice said. The designations include current and former CAR government officials and militia leaders. The six people remain subject to asset freezes, it said.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control is amending the base civil penalty amount for certain sanctions violations to reflect inflation adjustments for its civil monetary penalties, a notice released Aug. 10 said. The change, which takes effect Aug. 11, revises the definition for OFAC’s “applicable schedule amount,” which establishes a base penalty for non-egregious sanctions violations cases that do not involve a voluntary self-disclosure.
Australia is considering renewing certain sanctions entries under Iran, Egypt, Syria and Lebanon, including designations for terrorism-related reasons, it said Aug. 10. Before the sanctions are renewed, Australia said it will accept requests by the listed people to revoke the sanctions or to make a “statement of case.” Australia will accept submissions until 5 p.m. Australian Eastern Standard Time on Sept. 4.
The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs on Aug. 7 concluded an interagency review for a final Commerce Department rule that will implement export control decisions from the 2019 Wassenaar Arrangement plenary. The rule, which OIRA received June 9 (see 2006120018), will place new controls on emerging technologies. Commerce officials said in May the agency was preparing to issue several emerging technology controls (see 2005190052), including six controls agreed to at Wassenaar. OIRA also recently completed review of a rule to implement export control decisions from the 2018 Wassenaar Arrangement plenary (see 2007220015).