Mouser Electronics, one of several firms sued this week in a Texas state court for allegedly not doing enough to ensure the semiconductor parts they sell don't end up in Russian or Iranian hands (see 2512110054), said they will respond to the matter in court. “We deeply respect the legal process and will respond to this matter in court, versus the media,” said Kevin Hess, senior vice president of marketing at Mouser Electronics.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control last week removed sanctions from Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes; his wife, Viviane Barci de Moraes; and the Brazil-based Lex Institute, which his wife leads. OFAC sanctioned the judge and Lex earlier this year after accusing him of using his position to "authorize arbitrary pre-trial detentions and suppress freedom of expression."
The U.K. added four people to its Sudan sanctions regime on Dec. 12 for their leadership positions in the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the Sudanese paramilitary force waging war in Sudan. The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation listed Gedo Hamdan Ahmed; Abdul Rahim Hamdan Daglo, RSF lieutenant general; Al-Fateh Abdullah Idris, RSF brigadier general; and Tijani Ibrahim Moussa Mohamed, RSF field commander.
The Bureau of Industry and Security has completed a round of interagency reviews to finalize a set of regulations that in January placed new export controls on certain lab equipment that can be misused by "countries of concern" for military purposes (see 2501150020). The rulemaking, sent for interagency review Sept. 23 and completed Dec. 11, will finalize those revisions to "address the accelerating development and deployment of advanced biotechnology tools contrary to U.S. national security and foreign policy interests," BIS said.
The U.S. government appears to be focusing more heavily on adding entities to the Pentagon’s Chinese military company list, and Chinese companies are growing increasingly concerned about being added, lawyers said.
The U.K. has formally acceded to the Agreement on Defense Export Controls, a partnership with France, Germany and Spain aimed at removing obstacles to license application approvals.
Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, said Dec. 11 the U.S. should designate Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
Rep. Mike Kennedy, R-Utah, on Dec. 4 introduced a House companion to a Senate bill that would sanction Chinese individuals and entities that engage in a pattern of theft of intellectual property from the U.S. (see 2501310002). The Combatting China’s Pilfering of Intellectual Property Act, or CCP IP Act, was referred to the House Foreign Affairs and Judiciary committees. Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah, reintroduced the Senate version in January.
A bipartisan, bicameral group of four lawmakers led by House Select Committee on China ranking member Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., has introduced a bill aimed at helping the U.S. improve its use of sanctions against China for conducting oil and missile-related trade with Iran.
The House voted late Dec. 10 to pass the final FY 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, which includes legislation to limit U.S. outbound investment in China and repeal a Syria sanctions law (see 2512080048).