The Directorate of Defense Control’s Defense Export Control and Compliance System will be unavailable Sept. 28 from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. EDT for system updates and maintenance, the DDTC said Sept. 25. Users will not be able to submit Advisory Opinion or Commodity Jurisdiction requests during the outage. DDTC said the time window for the maintenance may change. Questions or concerns should be directed to the DDTC Help Desk at (202) 663-2838 or dtradehelpdesk@state.gov.

U.S. exporters reported sales of 581,000 metric tons of soybeans to China since Sept. 1, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service said Sept. 25. The sales are for delivery during the 2019/2020 marketing year, which started Sept. 1. The sales report came as China said it would begin buying U.S. agricultural products, including pork and soybeans, in response to President Donald Trump’s two-week postponement of tariffs on Chinese goods earlier this month (see 1909120046).

Key elements of the Treasury Department’s recently released proposed regulations on the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act include an expanded jurisdiction to review “non-controlling investments” and certain exemptions to reviews, Crowell Moring said in a Sept. 19 post.

Gilbert Kaplan, Commerce's undersecretary for international trade, resigned last week, a Commerce spokesperson said, declining to answer further questions. Kaplan's resignation came during an important week in trade negotiations with China as Chinese officials visited Washington to continue talks. Kaplan was confirmed to the role in 2018 after working as a trade lawyer with King & Spalding. The resignation was first reported by Bloomberg.

The Directorate of Defense Trade Controls IT Modernization team is updating the third-party function of its Defense Export Control and Compliance System (DECCS) application, the DDTC said Sept. 16. The changes, which take effect Sept. 20, will require third-party users to “use a dedicated account to access a company’s information,” the DDTC said. If users need “access to multiple companies” as a third party, they can register “multiple accounts using unique email addresses,” the DDTC said. Questions should be directed to the Defense Trade Application System help desk at dtradehelpdesk@state.gov or (202) 663-2838.

President Donald Trump renewed for one year authorities under the Trading With the Enemy Act with respect to Cuba, the White House said Sept. 13. The authorities, implemented by the Cuban Assets Control Regulations, block certain trade between U.S. and Cuba. They had been set to expire Sept. 14.

The State Department approved two potential sales of military goods to Morocco worth more than a combined $950 million, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said Sept. 12. The first sale involves $776 million worth of “various TOW-2A missiles” and the second sale includes $209 million worth of F-16 ammunition, the DSCA said. The contractor for the first sale is Raytheon Missile Systems. The contractors for the second sale are Raytheon USA, Orbital ATK, General Dynamics, Kilgore Cheming Groupe, Cheming Groupe and Kaman Precision Products, the DSCA said.

The Aerospace Industries Association released its 2019 Facts & Figures report, saying aerospace and defense exports have steadily increased despite international market uncertainty. The report said an increasing demand for commercial aircraft, combined with emerging “markets and routes,” has caused exports to grow. This has been buoyed by a “rise in geopolitical threats” that has led to “increased spending on a global scale as allies in foreign markets continue to procure cutting-edge American technology.” The AIA expects growth to continue as U.S. allies, including those in East Asia and Europe, “increase their defense budgets to address common national security concerns.”

The State Department approved a potential $6.5 billion sale of military goods to Poland, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a Sept. 11 press release. The sale includes 32 F-35 Joint Strike Fighter aircraft along with engines, “electronic warfare systems,” communications equipment, navigation and identification equipment, weapons capabilities and more. The DSCA said the sale will help the national security of the U.S. by aiding a North Atlantic Treaty Organization ally. The contractors will be Texas-based Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company and Connecticut-based Pratt & Whitney Military Engines.

The Congressional Research Service released a report Sept. 10 on trade and economic relations between the U.S. and China, including the current issues hindering trade. The report covers U.S. issues with Chinese industrial policies, intellectual property rights and concerns over exports of sensitive technology.