Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, reintroduced a bill Jan. 13 that would designate the Houthis, also known as Ansarallah, as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO), saying the label would trigger more effective sanctions against third parties that supply the Yemen-based group.
President Joe Biden is removing Cuba from the State Department's state sponsors of terrorism list, one of several steps his administration is taking to "improve the livelihood of Cubans," the White House announced Jan. 14.
Outgoing Bureau of Industry and Security Undersecretary Alan Estevez said he would advise his successor to continue coordinating export controls with allies and to not immediately turn to extraterritorial restrictions, such as the foreign direct product rule.
Many signs are pointing toward the incoming Trump administration embracing the new sweeping U.S. export controls on AI chips, an AI technology policy researcher said this week.
A new Bureau of Industry and Security rule that will place new, worldwide export controls on advanced computing chips and certain closed artificial intelligence model weights was widely panned by the American semiconductor and technology industry this week, even as U.S. officials said the restrictions are necessary to keep American companies ahead of their Chinese competitors.
The U.S. announced a host of new sanctions against Russia’s energy sector last week, targeting major Russian oil producers, oil service providers and insurance companies, as well as vessels and traders moving Russian oil as part of the country’s shadow fleet. The Office of Foreign Assets Control also issued two new determinations that authorize sanctions against any person or entity with ties to Russia’s energy sector and that block the provision of U.S. petroleum services to parties in Russia, and it announced it will soon be ending a general license that had authorized certain Russia-related energy payments.
In one of its first acts in the 119th Congress, the House of Representatives passed a bill Jan. 9 that would sanction International Criminal Court (ICC) officials for issuing arrest warrants for Israeli officials over the war in Gaza (see 2501060025).
The Biden administration’s upcoming AI chip-related export controls likely will upset key U.S. allies, especially the EU, by reinforcing the notion that the U.S. relies too heavily on extraterritorial controls and is “hellbent” on maintaining American technology leadership, the Center for European Policy Analysis said this week.
The Biden administration has revised its policy guidance for missile technology exports to streamline defense trade with close allies while renewing its commitment to global nonproliferation efforts, the White House said Jan. 7.
The Bureau of Industry and Security's upcoming export controls on advanced AI-related semiconductors will introduce expansive compliance hurdles and sales limitations that will hurt American firms and could push U.S. allies to work closer with China, a major technology think tank and a leading semiconductor industry group said this week.