US Officials Discuss Importance of Trade Controls in Maldives
Representatives from the U.S., Singapore, the Philippines and the United Arab Emirates convened this week with Maldivian officials in the Maldives to discuss export controls and other trade issues during the inaugural Maldives Strategic Trade Management Forum.
Michael Burnett, a regional export control officer with the Bureau of Industry and Security, said the event was organized with help from the Commerce and State departments and marked a “significant step towards enforcement” of a U.N. Security Council resolution aimed at countering weapons proliferation. “The Maldives is poised as a global trade hub which makes the adoption of strategic trade controls a priority in securing global supply chains and attracting foreign investment,” Burnett said on LinkedIn.
A BIS spokesperson didn’t release more information about the forum. The U.S. has used export controls, sanctions and DOJ indictments to single out businesses in the Maldives for helping to send controlled items to Russia (see 2409110018, 2312120037 and 2305160047).
Officials during the Maldives forum discussed how “secure trade practices can attract business and investment,” according to Corporate Maldives, a news source that covers business in the country. Representatives from the UAE and the Philippines specifically spoke about their systems for “overseeing the trade and transshipment” of dual-use goods, while the U.S. ambassador to the Maldives, Hugo Yon, emphasized the “importance of strategic trade management.”