The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs began a review of a final rule from the Bureau of Industry and Security to remove Hong Kong as a “separate destination” under the Export Administration Regulations. OIRA received the rule Nov. 6. BIS announced in June that it suspended license applications for shipments to Hong Kong (see 2006300050) to further align Hong Kong export regulations with mainland China.

The State Department approved a potential military sale to Canada worth about $500 million, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said Nov. 5. The sale includes “Standard Missile 2 (SM-2) Block IIIC missiles” and related equipment. The principal contractor will be Raytheon Missiles and Defense.

The State Department approved another potential military sale to Taiwan worth about $600 million, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said Nov. 3, drawing backlash from China. The sale includes four “Weapons-Ready MQ-9B Remotely Piloted Aircraft” and related equipment. General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. will be the principal contractor.

The State Department approved a potential military sale to Romania worth about $175 million, the Defense Cooperation Agency said Nov. 3. The sale includes F-16 fleet modernization and logistics support and related equipment. The principal contractor will be Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company.

The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls this week released the minutes from its Oct. 22 Defense Trade Advisory Group plenary meeting. The minutes cover remarks made by the group’s chair, Andrea Dynes, and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Defense Trade Controls Mike Miller, and notes from each of the working groups' presentations.

The State Department approved potential military sales to Australia and Guyana worth about $300 million combined, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said Oct. 30. Under the proposed sales, Australia would get $46 million worth of Javelin missiles and related equipment. The sale will not require the “assignment” of a government contractor, the DSCA said. The sale to Guyana includes $256 million worth of Bell 412EPi and 429 helicopters. The principal contractor will be Bell Helicopter Textron.

The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs began a review Oct. 28 of a State Department rule that would amend International Traffic in Arms Regulations requirements for certain countries. The proposed rule would modify the ITAR for Tunisia, Eritrea, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, Cote d'Ivoire, Sri Lanka and Vietnam, as well as “other changes.” The agency has mentioned the rule in past regulatory agendas (see 2007200005 and 1911250035).

The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls released on Oct. 29 its notifications to Congress of recently proposed export licenses. The 46 notifications, from April through June, feature arms sales to numerous countries including the United Kingdom, Israel, India, Australia, Canada, South Korea, the Philippines, Italy and Taiwan.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service will host a virtual trade event in January aimed at expanding market access for U.S. candy and snack exporters to the Persian Gulf region, an Oct. 28 news release said. USDA said it will arrange business meetings between U.S. exporters and local buyers during the Jan. 12-14, 2021, event, and said FAS staff in the region will offer “insights” into the trade conditions in Gulf nations, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The application deadline is Nov. 12.

The State Department approved a potential military sale to Taiwan worth about $2.37 billion, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said Oct. 26. The sale includes 100 Harpoon Coastal Defense Systems and related equipment including missiles, containers, transporter units, radar trucks and spare parts. The principal contractor will be Boeing. The notification of the proposed sale came the same day China announced sanctions on three U.S. defense companies for their involvement in other military sales to Taiwan (see 2010260017).