A bipartisan group of senators urged President Joe Biden to consider sanctions if Turkey continues to interfere in Cyprus' territory. The U.S. should work with the European Union to “make clear” that Turkey’s continued attempts to develop the Varosha coastline will be met with multilateral sanctions, the senators said in a July 14 letter. “The U.S. and the EU should make clear to President [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan that continuing to violate [United Nations Security Council] Resolutions and the rule of law is unacceptable,” said the senators, headed by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez, D-N.J.
The U.S. should impose sanctions against Russia for the Kremlin’s efforts to shelter cybercriminals responsible for a recent wave of ransomware attacks, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Bob Menendez, D-N.J., said. In a July 13 letter, Menendez urged the State Department to use the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act provisions to impose penalties on the Russian government. “[W]ithout significant pressure from the United States and its allies,” Menendez said, “the Kremlin is unlikely to curb the cybercriminals it currently shelters.” The State Department declined to comment.
The U.S. should end all negotiations with Iran about rejoining the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (see 2106240044) after the U.S. charged four Iranian intelligence officials this week with trying to kidnap a U.S. journalist, Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, said July 14. The kidnapping scheme “demonstrates just how little regard the Iranian regime has for ongoing negotiations,” Risch said. “In light of all that is happening and the long list of Iranian offenses, it’s time for the administration to suspend the ongoing indirect negotiations with the Iranians.”
The Commerce Department should add China’s Yangtze Memory Technologies Company to the Entity List because it has “clear ties” to the Chinese military and is helping the country gain ground in the semiconductor industry, two Republican senators told Commerce. Sens. Michael McCaul of Texas and Bill Hagerty of Tennessee said the chip company also should be subject to the foreign direct product rule, which would restrict the company’s ability to import certain foreign-made semiconductor equipment that is built with or that incorporates U.S. technology. “With no [Chinese] firm or alternative foreign provider capable of providing YMTC with comparable equipment and software -- including high aperture etching tools, metrology and inspection tools, and cleaning systems -- a unilateral control” by the U.S. would “significantly hinder YMTC’s ability to implement a [Chinese] industrial plan designed to weaken U.S. national and economic security and increase its reliance on” China, the senators said in a July 12 letter to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
The Senate Finance Committee recommended Sarah Bianchi and Jayme White to be deputy U.S. trade representatives, with strong bipartisan tallies on July 13. White, who was the chief trade adviser to Senate Finance Committee Democrats before his nomination, was approved 25-3. If confirmed, White would have responsibility for the Western Hemisphere, Europe, the Middle East, labor and the environment (see {Ref:2104160066]). Sarah Bianchi, who was approved 27-1, would cover Asia, Africa, services, textiles, investment and industrial competitiveness (see 2106010033). They were nominated by President Joe Biden in April. Confirmation votes will come later in the full Senate
The House Appropriations Committee released its draft proposals for funding the Commerce Department and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. It wants to spend $577.4 million on the Commerce Department's International Trade Administration, $36.4 million more than the current fiscal year's spending, a 6.7% increase. It wants to spend $143.4 million on the Bureau of Industry and Security, up $10.4 million from the current year, a 7.8% increase.
Congress may want to advise the Biden administration on which issues it should prioritize during discussions on a potential free trade agreement with Kenya (see 2105120050 and 2104020034), the Congressional Research Service said in a July 7 report. The report provides an overview of the various motivations, challenges and potential roadblocks that officials might face during negotiations, and said the deal could be pivotal for the U.S. desire to expand trading ties in Africa. Reducing trade barriers could also help U.S. companies remain competitive in the Kenyan market, especially after that country finalized a deal with the United Kingdom (see 2011030017) and is close to completing an agreement with the European Union.
Rep. Rick Larsen, a pro-trade Democrat from Washington state, told an audience at the Washington International Trade Association that Congress views China primarily as a strategic competitor, though members recognize there are areas of cooperation as well. He said that 10 years ago, the view from Washington was the reverse.
A day before high-level trade talks with Taiwan (see 2106300009), Sens. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Mark Warner, D-Va., led a letter asking U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai to reconvene the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) meetings, and requested that she then “take steps to begin laying the groundwork for negotiation of a free trade agreement (FTA), or other preliminary agreement, with Taiwan.” Forty other senators signed.
Rep. Jodey Arrington, a Republican on the Ways and Means Committee, was cool to fellow Texas delegation member Sen. John Cornyn's proposal to study the possibility of allowing goods made in foreign-trade zones to be considered originating under USMCA.