The Trump administration confirmed this week it will not renew a general license from the Office of Foreign Assets Control that has allowed Chevron to wind down certain oil activities in Venezuela.
Social Media
Social media platforms are facing intense scrutiny over how they collect, share and monetize user data. As new state and federal laws focus on age verification, parental controls and transparency requirements, social media companies face legal risks around algorithmic targeting, third-party tracking and children's safety. This page follows key legislation, investigations and lawsuits shaping privacy practices for major social platforms.
The EU is lifting its remaining sanctions against Syria, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said this week.
The EU has agreed to a 17th package of sanctions against Russia, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said May 14 on social media. The package includes more restrictions on Russian access to "battlefield technology" and the designations of 189 so-called shadow fleet vessels helping Russia move energy exports, she said. "This war has to end," von der Leyen said. "We will keep the pressure high on the Kremlin." The EU didn't immediately release more information about the measures, which are expected to be formally released in the coming days.
David Sacks, the president's AI policy adviser, said the Biden-era AI diffusion export control rule was an “overreach” of U.S. export control authority and alienated American allies. The Bureau of Industry and Security’s plan to rescind the rule (see 2505070039 and 2505080026) was an “excellent decision,” he said last week.
A U.S.-U.K. trade deal announced in the Oval Office leaves the average tariff on U.K. goods at 10%; however, aerospace engines and parts will enter duty-free.
President Donald Trump told NBC’s “Meet the Press” May 4 that he “would be willing” to provide China’s ByteDance more time to divest TikTok if it can’t find a buyer by the June 19 deadline. Trump already has given ByteDance two 75-day extensions to comply with a 2024 law that requires the company to sell TikTok or face a U.S. ban on the popular social media application (see 2504040062).
President Donald Trump is nominating his national security adviser, Milke Waltz, to instead be the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., he announced on social media. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will serve as interim national security adviser while continuing to lead the State Department, Trump said. The announcement comes weeks after it was revealed Waltz added a journalist to a discussion about military plans among senior administration officials on the messaging app Signal.
Amid swirling reports that China is considering exemptions from tariffs on some critical U.S. goods, an industry expert said that these moves should not be read as a broader shift in the trade war between the two countries.
President Donald Trump criticized business officials who have said his tariffs actions are damaging, bragged about countries and executives asking for breaks, and made a list of non-tariff cheating he wants countries to end, all on social media over the weekend.
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., who introduced a bill in January to prohibit AI technology exports to China (see 2502030031), said April 14 that he believes recent news about China’s AI activities might give his legislation a lift.