DOJ unveiled last week that it had seized two "mission crew trainers" in 2024 that allegedly were bound for the Chinese military from a South African flight academy on the Entity List. The agency made the announcement Jan. 15 while filling a forfeiture complaint for both trainers with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
Jinchao Wei, a former sailor with the U.S. Navy who was found guilty in August of illegally exporting military information and technical data to China (see 2508210039), was sentenced this week to 200 months in prison. Wei was convicted on several counts, including espionage and illegally exporting technical data related to defense articles in violation of the Arms Export Control Act and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations.
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The State Department is accepting applications for its Defense Export Controls and Compliance System 2026 User Group, which will provide feedback to the agency on DECCS functionality and suggest potential improvements. The agency’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls will appoint 50 industry volunteers to the user group, all of whom must be enrolled with DECCS and represent companies, government agencies or third-party organizations involved in defense trade. Member terms will last one year. Applicants should email PM_DDTCProjectTeam@state.gov by the close of business on Jan. 23 with their name and company or government affiliation.
The State Department's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls on Jan. 2 sent a proposed rule for interagency review that could lead to U.S. Munitions List updates. The rule, titled "International Traffic in Arms Regulations: Proposed Omnibus USML Changes," would remove items from the USML that no longer warrant inclusion, add items that do, and clarify certain items described on the USML, the agency said.
The State Department's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls on Dec. 30 released a fact sheet for its recently issued rule that finalized an exemption for defense trade among the AUKUS partners -- the U.S., Australia and the U.K. -- within the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (see 2512290017). The fact sheet covers the "key elements" of the exemption, including who can be authorized users, the items on the Excluded Technology List that can't be used with the exemption, and more. DDTC also noted that its rule codified the requirement for the agency to adjudicate licenses for Australia, the U.K., and Canada within 30-45 days "when the transfer or activity cannot be undertaken under an ITAR exemption," and it authorizes "the reexport and retransfer of classified defense articles to certain dual nationals under certain circumstances."
The State Department is finalizing and making several changes to a 2024 AUKUS rule that created an exemption for defense trade among the U.S., Australia and the U.K., including one change that will create a new and separate exemption for exports to support the armed forces of the three nations. The agency also used the final rule to respond to a host of public comments from the 2024 change, declining several recommendations to limit the scope of the Excluded Technology List and providing more guidance about how the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls treats expedited licensing, who qualifies as an authorized user, and more.
The State Department's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls is continuing an initiative that offers a $500 discount for certain registrants with DDTC, the agency announced last week.
The State Department's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls, the DDTC Response Team and the agency's help desk will be closed beginning Dec. 24 because of the federal holiday, the agency announced this week. The Response Team will resume normal operations Dec. 29 at 8 a.m. ET, and the help desk will be back Jan. 2 at 8 a.m. ET. During this time, users can submit a support ticket using DDTC's virtual AI agent (see 2512160059) or through the agency's contact page. "Please be aware that, due to the holiday closure and a potential increase in inquiries, response times may be longer than usual and could extend into the following week. Processing of classified provisos for delivery may also be delayed."
The U.S. government is taking several steps to curb the transfer of U.S. firearms to drug cartels and other violent groups in Mexico, a State Department official told a congressional panel last week.