The Bureau of Industry and Security is inching closer toward potentially publishing a final rule that could revise export licensing requirements for certain cameras, systems or related components. The rule, sent for interagency review Oct. 31, will “better align controls with technological and commercial developments,” BIS said. The rule has been on the BIS regulatory agenda for several years (see 2307170038, 2206270007 and 2112210044).
The Bureau of Industry and Security recently published a set of frequently asked questions to provide guidance for exports to Israel. BIS said it’s able to expedite certain Israel-related export applications in light of the ongoing war in the region. It said the Palestinian territories of Gaza and the West Bank aren't recognized as separate destinations from Israel under the Export Administration Regulations, so items that require a license for Israel also need a license for those Palestinian territories.
U.S. agencies are prioritizing Israel-related exports and military sales as that country seeks more defense and dual-use equipment in the ongoing war in the region.
The U.S. should convince Japan, the Netherlands and other allies to restrict exports of lower-level chipmaking equipment to China to prevent Beijing from becoming the global leader in the "foundational" semiconductors those tools can produce, the Silverado Policy Accelerator think tank said in a new report last week. The report warned that current restrictions on advanced equipment risks pushing China to instead dominate the foundational chip sector, which will increase the likelihood that those semiconductors will be incorporated in U.S. defense technologies and could help Chinese companies “climb the value chain in leading-edge nodes, whether through legitimate or illegitimate means.”
The EU on Oct. 18 updated its list of "critical goods" Russia is seeking to acquire in violation of sanctions and export controls, including through third countries. The list includes mainly industrial goods and dual-use items "critical to the development, production or use of" Russian military systems, the EU said. They include hydrogen peroxide, oil filters, cranes, concrete mixers, various machine parts, pressure-reducing valves, electric conductors, motor vehicles and more.
The Bureau of Industry and Security on Nov. 6 will hold a public briefing on its recently updated export controls on advanced semiconductors and chipmaking equipment (see 2310170055). The briefing, which also will cover the agency’s addition this month of 13 Chinese semiconductor and technology companies to the Entity List (see 2310170063), will be led by Assistant Secretary for Export Administration Thea Kendler, who will “address important aspects” of the new restrictions.
The Bureau of Industry and Security sent a final rule for interagency review that would make corrections to the Export Administration Regulations. The rule, sent to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs Oct. 23, would “correct inadvertent errors to two recent” BIS Federal Register notices and would be “merely technical corrections,” the agency said.
The U.S. is not using its export controls for “economic protectionism” and is committed to a narrow, “targeted” approach to restrictions on advanced technologies, Bureau of Industry and Security Undersecretary Alan Estevez said in Japan last week. “We are laser focused on national security, and the controls we put in place are focused on select advanced technologies that have strategic applications,” Estevez said during the Mount Fuji Dialogue, an annual summit of U.S. and Japanese representatives. “We are strictly adhering to the small yard, high fence concept in applying our export controls.”
Although Dutch semiconductor equipment company ASML doesn’t expect the new U.S. export controls on China to have a “material effect” on the firm's financial outlook for 2023, it's preparing for the new rules to restrict more sales of its chipmaking equipment.
Kazakhstan is placing export restrictions on 106 types of military-related items in order to better comply with Western sanctions against Russia, Russian news agency Interfax reported Oct. 19. The report, citing Kazakhstan’s Vice Minister of Trade and Integration Kairat Torebaev, said the controls will impact spare parts for drones, special electronics chips and more. Exports of those goods are now “completely limited," Torebaev said.