The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls will perform scheduled maintenance on its Defense Export Control and Compliance System 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. EDT June 26, the agency said in a June 24 notice. Applications will be available during this time, but users “may experience disruptions,” DDTC said. The agency said users should access the system at a later time if “functionality” is affected.
Two U.S. citizens and three foreign nationals were indicted by a federal grand jury in Los Angeles for conspiring to illicitly ship defense articles to Russia, the Department of Justice said in a June 21 news release. The goods, allegedly exported without a license in violation of the Arms Export Control Act, include thermal imaging riflescopes and night-vision goggles. The five allegedly obtained the items using false names and addresses, then shipped the articles to Russian co-conspirators, DOJ said. The nightscopes and goggles are regulated under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, making their illegal exportation a violation of the AECA. Elena Shifrin of Mundelein, Illinois, and Vladimir Pridacha of Volo, Illinois, were arrested June 17 for their roles in the nearly four-year scheme. The other defendants are Boris Polosin of Russia, Vladimir Gohman of Israel and Igor Panchernikov, an Israeli national residing in Corona, California, during much of the scheme.
The State Department on June 10 released its annual report to Congress of authorized exports of defense goods and services to foreign countries and international organizations during the 2020 fiscal year. The report covers direct commercial sales of licensed items for permanent export under the Arms Export Control Act and includes export statistics for each country and organization, including aggregate dollar values of the exports, their quantities and data on the actual shipments of those licensed exports.
The State Department announced debarments against seven people convicted of violating the Arms Export Control Act. The debarments, which will be imposed starting June 4, target Ronald Adjei Danso, Julian Alonso Higuera, Qingshan Li (see 2006150026), Si Mong Park (see 2009220055), Maritza Rubio, Wei Sun (see 2011180019) and Randy Lew Williams. All seven are “generally ineligible” to participate in activity controlled by the International Traffic in Arms Regulations for three years following their dates of convictions. At the end of that period, they must apply to be reinstated from their debarment before engaging in ITAR activities.
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The Bureau of Industry and Security revoked export privileges for a North Carolina man after he illegally exported firearms and ammunition to Honduras, BIS said in a May 27 order. Chris Rodriguez was convicted Oct. 18, 2019, for violating the Arms Export Control Act when he tried to ship 27 firearms and “hundreds” of rounds of ammunition without the required State Department licenses. Rodriguez was sentenced to 18 months in prison, three years of supervised release and a $100 fine. BIS also revoked his export privileges for seven years from the date of his conviction, and revoked any BIS-issued licenses in which he had an interest at the time of his conviction.
The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls will hold a June 8 webinar on defense service agreements, the agency announced May 27. Officials from DDTC’s information technology modernization team and licensing division will answer common questions on submitting agreement requests to DDTC and explain the submission process in the Defense Export Control and Compliance System. There will also be a question-and-answer period.
The State Department released a proposal May 26 to permanently allow employees involved in International Traffic in Arms Regulations-related activity to work remotely, a long-awaited measure that industry is expected to welcome. The rule proposes to permanently update the ITAR’s definition of a “regular employee,” which will also now include certain “contractual staff.”
The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls this week posted presentation materials from its May 20 Defense Trade Advisory Group meeting (see 2105200061 and 2105210015). The materials include export control-related recommendations from DTAG working groups and general topics of concern from members.
The State Department again determined Iran, North Korea, Syria, Venezuela and Cuba are not “cooperating fully” with U.S. antiterrorism efforts, a notice published May 25 said. Under the Arms Export Control Act, no defense article or defense service may be sold or licensed for export to a foreign country that is determined not to be cooperating, unless a waiver is granted.