Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., introduced a bill, the China Technology Transfer Control Act of 2019, on May 14 that would increase controls on “national interest technology” exports to China and allow the U.S. to sanction people or entities that violate the controls. In a press release, Hawley’s office said the bill “places all ‘core technologies’ from China’s ‘Made in China 2025’ strategy on the Department of Commerce’s Export Control List.” The core technologies include 15 products, the release said, such as “artificial intelligence, robotics, semiconductors, advanced construction equipment and lithium battery manufacturing.” “For too long, China has exploited American innovation to undermine our values and threaten our security,” Hawley said in a statement. “This legislation is an important step toward keeping American technology out of the hands of the Chinese government and its military.”
The United Nations Security Council sanctioned one entity and removed five other entities from its sanctions lists, the U.N. said May 14. The U.N. added the “Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant -- Khorasan” to its ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions list while removing Nessim ben Mohamed al-Cherif ben Mohamed Saleh al-Saadi from the same list, according to press releases. The U.N. also removed sanctions on four separate entities: the Directorate General of Baghdad Electricity Distribution and the Iraq-based Idrisi Centre for Engineering Consultancy (ICEC), National Centre for Engineering and Architectural Consultancy and State Enterprise for Fertilizer Industries.
After the Trump administration issued an executive order and announced export controls that targeted Chinese technology firm Huawei, China hinted at retaliation, saying it will take “necessary measures to safeguard” its companies. During May 16 press conferences, China’s Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Foreign Affairs denounced the U.S.’s decision to add Huawei Technologies to the Commerce Department’s Entity List and criticized the executive order President Donald Trump signed on May 15.
The Commerce Department on May 16 added Huawei Technologies to the Bureau of Industry and Security’s Entity List, eliciting strong reaction from Huawei and China over the move that may have substantial effects on U.S. exporters. In a notice in the Federal Register, BIS said it is imposing license requirements on Huawei and its 68 non-U.S. affiliates for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations with a license review policy of presumption of denial. The Federal Register notice is scheduled for May 21 publication, but the changes take effect May 16. All shipments aboard carriers as of May 16 may proceed to their destinations under previous license conditions.
During a House Financial Services subcommittee hearing on U.S. sanctions, several panelists painted a grave picture of the state of U.S.-imposed sanctions on Russia, calling for additional, stronger measures and criticizing the Trump administration's removal of sanctions from several Russian companies in January. “You’ve asked whether the current sanctions policy is effective, especially as it relates to Russia,” Daleep Singh, a senior fellow for the Center for a New American Security, told the Subcommittee on National Security, International Development and Monetary Policy on May 15. “Forgive me for being blunt, but my answer right now is 'no.'”
The Trump administration extended for one year beyond May 16 the existing national emergency with respect to threats to U.S. national security posed by Yemen, the White House said in a May 13 press release, continuing a 2012 executive order that sanctioned Yemen political and military leaders that “threaten the peace, security, or stability” of that country. In the press release, the White House said certain former government of Yemen officials “continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat” to U.S. foreign policy and national security.
Ukraine announced a series of economic sanctions against Russia that increased duty rates on a variety of imported goods and implemented an embargo on Russian cement and plywood, according to an unofficial translation of May 15 press releases from the Ukraine government.
The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security is looking for new members for its seven Technical Advisory Committees, the agency said in a notice. The TACs "advise the Department of Commerce on the technical parameters for export controls applicable to dual-use items (commodities, software, and technology) and on the administration of those controls." Six of the TACs are focused on the technical parameters of export controls, and the seventh is focused on the regulations and procedures, BIS said. The members are chosen by the Commerce secretary and must obtain secret-level clearances, it said. Nominations are due by June 15 and should go to Yvette.Springer@bis.doc.gov.
Speaking at a cryptocurrency conference in New York, Sigal Mandelker, Treasury’s under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said more countries are turning to digital currencies to evade U.S. sanctions. She also stressed the importance of complying with the Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctions programs, rejected the notion of a “one-size-fits-all” compliance program and warned that Treasury is looking into small actors -- not just large companies -- who commit violations.
The Bureau of Industry and Security issued its notice adding Huawei and 68 of the Chinese telecommunications equipment manufacturer’s affiliates to the Entity List. Effective May 16, the notice imposes a license requirement on Huawei and its listed affiliates for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, with a license review policy of presumption of denial. No license exceptions will be allowed for the listed entities. Shipments aboard a carrier to the port of export or re-export as of May 16 may proceed to their destination under their previous eligibility for a license exception or no license required. The notice is scheduled for publication May 21.