The U.S., Japan and South Korea committed to working more closely on “economic security” and supply chain issues, according to a readout of a Camp David meeting between the three countries’ foreign ministers last week. The officials said they want to collaborate more on “Minerals Security Partnership projects” and are committed to “accelerating cooperation on critical and emerging technologies,” including through joint research projects.

The State Department approved possible foreign military sales to Sweden and Austria, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced May 29. A $900 million sale to Sweden includes “UH-60M Black Hawk Helicopters” and related equipment. A $1.05 billion sale to Austria also includes “UH-60M Blackhawk Helicopters” as well as “related elements of logistics and program support.” The principal contractor for both sales will be Lockheed Martin, Sikorsky.

Detention and demurrage billings appear to have returned to pre-pandemic levels after spiking during the last few years, said Jason Guthrie, an official with the Federal Maritime Commission's Bureau of Trade Analysis.

The State Department approved a possible $950 million military sale to Brazil, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said May 24. The sale of UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters includes the "initial acquisition of $450 million in Major Defense Equipment," and up to $500 million in "other equipment and services." The principal contractor will be Lockheed Martin, Sikorsky.

Correction: The State Department approved a possible $96.4 million military sale to Canada, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said May 21 (see 2405220007).

The State Department approved a possible $96.4 million military sale to Canada, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said May 21. The sale includes “Joint Direct Attack Munition Tail Kits,” and the principal contractor will be Boeing.

The State Department’s Defense Export Control and Compliance System registration and licensing applications will be unavailable to users 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. EDT May 23 for scheduled system maintenance. Users should ensure any work in progress is saved before the downtime period.

The Bureau of Industry and Security is extending the comment period for an information collection related to a request for appointment of a Technical Advisory Committee. The collection describes the functions and responsibilities of the Commerce Department TACs, which "advise the government on proposed revisions to export control lists, licensing procedures, assessments of the foreign availability of controlled products, and export control regulations.” BIS originally sought feedback on the information collection in February (see 2402080017), and the agency is allowing for another 30 days of comments from after the notice is published on the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs website.

The State Department recently approved two potential military sales, to Ukraine and NATO, worth about $250 million combined.

A federal government payment website, Pay.gov, will be offline May 18 from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. EDT for "system testing and maintenance," the State Department's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls said. The outage will affect users paying their registration fees during this window. Users should direct questions and concerns to pay.gov customer support at 800-624-1373, option 2, or pay.gov.clev@clev.frb.org.