The Bureau of Industry and Security last week completed rounds of interagency review for two rules that could revise its space-related controls.

Companies affected by Norway’s recently announced export controls on emerging technologies should “act promptly” to make sure their exports don’t raise any legal or reputational risks, including by updating internal compliance programs, training employees on new licensing requirements and correctly classifying their goods and technology, the law firm Wikborg Rein said in an October client alert. The firm also said companies should review their current business dealings to identify any transactions that will require a license after the new controls take effect Nov. 1.

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.

U.S. semiconductor export controls on China lack a clear “endgame,” said Michael Mazarr, a senior political scientist with the RAND think tank. He said the controls are a “perfect example” of a U.S. policy approach that embraces “competition for its own sake and rushing down blind alleys without a clear sense of where policy will lead.”

Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao urged U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo this week to lift U.S. semiconductor export restrictions against China (see 2211010042 and 2302020034) and reverse its proposed import restrictions on Chinese connected vehicles (see 2409220001), saying the two countries need to reach a clearer understanding around their national security-related trade policies.

The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls recently updated its list of commodity jurisdiction (CJ) determinations, which DDTC issues after receiving requests from industry to determine whether a commodity or service is covered by the U.S. Munitions List. The table includes several new CJ determinations issued in September, including certain subassemblies for tactical unmanned aerial vehicles, which DDTC classified as USML Category VIII(f); an item that allows helicopters to carry sling loads and serves as “a conduit for electric actuation of remote hooks and other electrically operated equipment,” which it classified under the Export Administration Regulations as EAR99; and a digital fuel gauge that it classified as USML Category VIII(h)(1).

Norway is adding a new annex to its export control list to cover a set of “critical goods and technologies” that aren’t currently subject to export licensing requirements, including certain advanced semiconductors and quantum computers, according to an unofficial translation of an Oct. 3 notice from the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The new annex, effective Nov. 1, will cover items that “are considered disruptive technologies or emerging technologies that are of such a nature that they should be subject to control,” the ministry said.

The Nov. 5 presidential election could have a significant impact on how the U.S. works with the EU to develop export controls for China, according to a new report released last week by the Washington, D.C.-based American-German Institute.

The Biden administration is “strongly committed to combating the illegal transit of firearms to Hait through multiple initiatives,” a National Security Council spokesperson said late Sept. 27.

The Bureau of Industry and Security has reviewed more than 1,250 suspicious activity reports (SARs) submitted to the government as part of an effort with the Treasury Department to collect more tips from industry about possible Russia-related sanctions or export control violations, said Matthew Axelrod, the top BIS export enforcement official.