The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week issued a maximum $4.67 million fine against a real estate investor for mortgaging, renovating, and selling a real estate property owned by a sanctioned Russian oligarch’s family member.
A bill that would require U.S. manufacturers of advanced AI chips to make their products available to American firms before selling them to China “is pretty common sense,” said Daniel Remler, a former State Department official.
The U.S. should focus on leading the global diffusion of American AI technology to allies instead of bargaining with Beijing to sell advanced chips to China, an industry official and think tank expert said this week.
The U.S. plans to allow United Arab Emirates-based AI company G42 and Saudi Arabia-based AI firm Humain to buy the equivalent of up to 35,000 Nvidia Blackwell chips, also known as GB300s, the Commerce Department said in a Nov. 19 emailed press release.
Longtime senior Bureau of Industry and Security official Kevin Kurland is leaving the agency next month, multiple people familiar with the matter said. A BIS official said Kurland informed senior agency staff this week that he plans to retire from government before the end of the year.
A senior Wassenaar Arrangement official pushed back on criticism against the multilateral export control body, saying it continues to function and serve as an important forum for members despite Russia’s inclusion.
Banks and logistics providers are more frequently asking exporters about their compliance programs to certify that the goods they’re helping to move don’t violate any trade laws, said Eva Lakova, a director for sanctions and export controls with PricewaterhouseCoopers.
The U.S. appeared to have underestimated or not understood the impact of the Bureau of Industry and Security 50% rule, especially the volume of license applications the agency was set to receive, said Thea Kendler, former BIS assistant secretary for export administration.
The EU is hoping to complete its new economic security doctrine next month to outline how the bloc should be using its export control powers and other similar trade tools, said Maros Sefcovic, the EU commissioner for trade and economic security.
The EU needs to overhaul its approach to export controls so it can better respond to rising extraterritorial restrictions by the U.S. and China, a European Parliament member told a conference of EU and U.S. government and industry officials last week.