Two U.S. senators urged the Trump administration to impose sanctions against Turkey for its purchase of Russian missile systems and criticized the Defense Department for not moving fast enough to remove Turkey from F-35 supply chains. Sens. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., and James Lankford, R-Okla., said the State Department should immediately impose asset freezes under the Countering America’s Adversaries through Sanctions Act, adding that Turkey has “no intention of reversing course and divesting of this system.”
The U.S. should expand federal funding for technology research to help U.S. industries lead in areas such as quantum computing, artificial intelligence and biotechnology, a House subcommittee said in an Oct. 6 report. The report outlines revisions for the U.S. intelligence committee to better support U.S. innovation and research, and said the government needs to act or risk falling behind in technology competition with China.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control announced a range of sanctions targeting 17 major Iranian banks for operating in the country’s financial sector and one Iranian bank for being affiliated with the Iranian military. The agency also issued a general license authorizing certain transactions with the banks and announced a 45-day wind-down period for activities involving non U.S. people and companies.
The Bureau of Industry and Security removed 40 entries and added 26 others to its Unverified List, the agency said in a final rule released Oct. 8. BIS removed the 40 entries -- located in China, Hong Kong, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates -- after verifying their “legitimacy and reliability” relating to the end use of items subject to the Export Administration Regulations or because their companies are no longer “involved in U.S. exports.” BIS added the 26 others -- located in Armenia, Finland, Hong Kong, Germany, Pakistan, Turkey, the UAE, Mexico and China -- because it was unable to verify their “bona fides” through an end-use check. The changes take effect Oct. 9.
A Morristown, New Jersey, woman was sentenced to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to her role in a scheme to illegally smuggle millions of dollars worth of aircraft parts to Iran (see 1906110057), the Justice Department said Oct. 6. Joyce Eliabachus was charged with conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act after she helped smuggle more than $2 million worth of aircraft components using freight forwarding companies in the United Arab Emirates and Turkey. Eliabachus used her Edsun Equipments LLC, run from her home, to buy the aircraft components from U.S. distributors before repackaging them and shipping them to the freight forwarders, the Justice Department said. Eliabachus also falsified the components' destination, end-users and value to avoid filing “export control forms.”
The U.S. should find ways to increase trade with Taiwan but should be careful not to worsen tensions with China, which views Taiwan as its territory, Chinese trade experts and researchers said. A better trading relationship with Taiwan would help the U.S. technology sector, specifically semiconductor makers, many of which rely on Taiwanese suppliers to compete with China, the experts said.
The United Kingdom’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation added 35 entries and revised five entries under its Belarus sanctions, an Oct. 5 notice said. The additions include Belarusian government, military and election officials, and the revisions add identifying information for certain individuals.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Oct. 6 extended a general license related to Petroleos de Venezuela and updated a frequently asked question. General License No. 5E, which replaced No. 5D (see 2007150018), authorizes certain transactions with PdVSA involving an 8.5% bond on or after Jan. 19, 2021. OFAC updated a Venezuela FAQ to reflect the change. The license was scheduled to expire Oct. 20.
The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls issued guidance Oct. 5 on the “see-through rule” -- a “colloquial phrase” that refers to the impact of controls under International Traffic in Arms Regulations. DDTC clarified the rule by stressing that ITAR controls and requirements do not “disappear simply because the defense article is integrated into another item.” If an ITAR-controlled component is integrated into a “larger system or end-item,” the component does “not lose its identity.” DDTC said “the ITAR ‘sees through’ the larger system or end-item and continues to regulate that defense article.”
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