The White House this week extended a national emergency that authorizes certain export control regulations. It was renewed for one year beyond the original Aug. 17 expiration.
The Bureau of Industry and Security sent a final rule for interagency review that would revise Biden-era regulations that increased restrictions on firearms exports. The rule, sent for review Aug. 4, is expected to reverse some of those restrictions amid lobbying from gun industry advocates (see 2505290012). Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said in June that the Biden-era rule was "inconsistent with our views" (see 2506050050).
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The U.S. last week arrested and accused two Chinese nationals of using a California-based company to illegally export tens of millions of dollars' worth of advanced AI semiconductors to China, including by first transshipping the chips through Malaysia and Singapore.
U.S. allies, including in Europe, may back away from their plans to de-risk from China if they continue to see the Trump administration use export controls as a bargaining chip in trade negotiations with China, a panelist said during an event this week hosted by the Center for a New American Security. Others said they’re skeptical about the sustainability of the trade deals announced by the U.S. last week, especially those that commit other countries to large purchases of American goods.
The U.K. this week revised its Russia-related sanctions evasion guidance to update its list of countries and items that pose high risk of sanctions circumvention.
Canada last week objected to a report saying that the country is continuing to export weapons to Israel despite announcing restrictions on those shipments earlier this year.
A potential Chinese blockade of Taiwan could significantly affect trade routes to and from Asia, along with broader supply chains that depend on the region, said Eric Heginbotham, an international studies research scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee ranking member Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, who's also on the committee, introduced a bill Aug. 1 that could lead to additional sanctions on China for providing dual-use items to Russia’s war against Ukraine.
A State Department spokesperson this week declined to say whether the U.S. would consider reinstating sanctions against Israeli settlers who have committed violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. But, he said, the U.S. has spoken with the Israeli government about the recent uptick in violence.