April 2024 Export Practitioner

A federal jury in Miami has convicted the former Comptroller General of Ecuador  for his role in a multimillion-dollar international bribery and money laundering scheme. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, between 2010 to 2015, Carlos Ramon Polit Faggioni, 73, solicited and received over $10 million in bribe payments from Odebrecht S.A., the Brazil-based construction conglomerate.

The Justice Department today announced the unsealing of an indictment charging 10 defendants in a scheme to illegally procure aircraft parts, including Honeywell Turbofan Engines, from the United States to service PDVSA’s aircraft fleet in Venezuela, in violation of U.S. sanctions and export controls.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department's Criminal Division announced the outlines of a voluntary self-disclosure progam in a statement Monday …

The New Chairman of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, Rep. John Moolenaar (R-MI) promises to continue the Committee's role as a spotlight, though perhaps with less  candlepower than his predecessor, retiring Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI)

The European Parliament has given its final approval to a new regulation enabling the EU to prohibit the sale, import, and export of goods made using forced labour. Originally proposed in 2021, the rulemaking had been stymied by resistance from industry groups, with the final result lacking much of the efficacy of the US version, the Uyghur Forced Labor Protection Act.

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo and Kenyan Cabinet Secretary of Information, Communication and the Digital Economy Eliud Owalo "affirmed their shared priorities for strengthening the digital economy, promoting innovation, and increasing digital trade and investment between the United States and Kenya," according to a readout from the Commerce Department, At the Wednesday meeting the principals "reaffirmed their intention to cooperate on establishing interoperable privacy regimes and facilitating trusted cross-border data flows." Later Secretary Raimondo hosted a roundtable discussion with several leading women technology leaders in Kenya to "discuss the Biden-Harris Administration’s Digital Transformation with Africa initiative"

The United States and Mexico Monday announced a course of remediation to address denials of rights at the RV Fresh Foods facility, which produces guacamole in the state of Michoacán. This case is the first time the United States has used the mechanism in the food manufacturing sector. It is also the first time both the United States and Mexico have identified violations related to the conduct of the petitioning union.

The leaders of the House Select Committee on China are calling on the Administration to press allies – particularly Europe and the United Kingdom – to prevent Chinese goods made by Uyghur forced labor from entering their markets. “We are particularly concerned that goods made by Uyghur forced labor continue to flood into Europe and the United Kingdom (UK), which some have described as ‘dumping grounds’ for these products that are otherwise banned from importation into the United States,” Committee Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-Wis) and ranking Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi (Ill) wrote in a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

The USTR has requested a Rapid Response Labor Mechanism (RRM) panel under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) to resolve a labor dispute at call center operator Atento Servicios, S.A. de C.V. .    At the conclusion of its 45-day review period, Mexico found a denial of rights had existed, but determined that Atento Servicios had taken the necessary actions to remediate the denial of rights during Mexico’s review period. The United States disagrees with this determination and is requesting establishment of an RRM panel to review the situation.

Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) makes changes to the Russia and Belarus sanctions under the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to add a new license exception for EAR99 medical devices and related parts, components, accessories, and attachments for use in or with medical devices that are destined for both countries and the temporarily occupied Crimea region of Ukraine, or the covered regions of Ukraine. The purpose of this final rule is to authorize under a license exception certain exports, reexports, and transfers (in-country) of “medical devices” that are being regularly approved and that advance U.S. national security and foreign policy interests. In addition, this final rule makes two corrections to the EAR related to Russia-related rules published in January, and March, 2024 by correcting an end-user control and adding a cross-reference correction.

For the first time in fifteen years, the State Department is proposing to revise and increase the registration fees for those required to register with the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls …

The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) published an interim final rule significantly reducing licensing requirements for Australia and the United Kingdom (UK) to foster defense trade and technological innovation. BIS is removing Commerce Control List (CCL) license requirements to allow Commerce-controlled military items, missile technology-related items, and hot section engine-related items to be exported or reexported to Australia and the UK without a license.  Similar relaxation by the State Department on ITAR controlled technology can be expected "over the course of the next 120 days," according to a statement.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), Department of Commerce is announcing its recruitment of candidates to serve on one of its six Technical Advisory Committees (“TACs”). TAC …

The United States will publish a list of advanced Chinese chipmaking factories barred from receiving key tools, Reuters reported Thursday, citing three separate sources. The list could be released in the next couple of months, according to the report..