Export Control News

The Arctic is no longer a remote expanse beyond the edges of global commerce — it is now a contested arena where strategic competition, energy development, and maritime innovation converge. As climate change accelerates sea ice retreat, previously impassable waters are opening to navigation for longer periods each year. This change unlocks shorter trade routes, exposes massive untapped hydrocarbon and minerals reserves, and creates demand for ships able to operate in some of the harshest conditions on Earth.In this evolving environment…

Thousands of license applications by U.S. companies to export goods and technology around the globe, including to China, are in limbo because turmoil at the agency in charge of approving them has left it nearly paralyzed, two sources said.While U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has become a familiar face touting President Donald Trump's tariff and trade deals, sources said the export bureau under Lutnick's command has failed to issue expected new rules, stifled communications with industry representatives…

The U.S. in recent days suspended licenses for nuclear equipment suppliers to sell to China's power plants, according to four people familiar with the matter, as the two countries engage in a damaging trade war.The suspensions were issued by the U.S. Department of Commerce, the people said, and affect export licenses for parts and equipment used with nuclear power plants.Nuclear equipment suppliers are among a wide range of companies whose sales have been restricted over the past two weeks as the U.S.-China trade war shifted from negotiating tariffs to throttling each other's supply chains.

Two Iranian cargo vessels carrying an ingredient for missile propellant will sail from China to Iran in the next few weeks, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing intelligence from security officials in two Western countries.The reported transactions could make the Chinese entities involved subject to U.S. sanctions aimed at curbing Iran's weapons programs, as the two Iranian vessels are already under U.S. sanctions.The FT said the Iranian-flagged ships, the Golbon and the Jairan…

The U.S. Department of Defense released on the Federal Register on January 7, 2025 a "Notice of Chinese military companies operating in the United States." A trio of prominent maritime companies Cosco Shipping Holdings Co.; China State Shipbuilding Corp. and China Shipbuilding Trading Co. made the list, as "the Deputy Secretary of Defense has determined that the entities listed ... qualify as “Chinese military companies” in accordance with the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National…

The United States added six companies to its trade restriction list on Tuesday, including four for their links to the training of China's military forces, according to a government posting.Two of the companies are in China, one in South Africa, two in the United Arab Emirates and one in Britain.Global Training Solutions Limited and Smartech Future Limited, both in China, as well as Grace Air (Pty) Ltd and Livingston Aerospace Limited of the United Kingdom, were added over their…

The Australian Parliament has now legislated an end date for live sheep export, with the Senate officially passing the Export Control Amendment (Ending Live Sheep Exports by Sea) Bill 2024 on Monday evening.From 1 May 2028, sheep will no longer be sent on long-haul journeys. The government has committed $107 million over five years for sheep producers and the supply chain to plan for and adjust to the phase out. Early action is being encouraged by the provision of funding now.Professional…

The United States on Wednesday issued hundreds of fresh sanctions targeting Russia over the war in Ukraine in action that took aim at Moscow's circumvention of Western measures, including through China.The U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on nearly 200 targets and the State Department designated more than 80 in one of the most wide-ranging actions against Chinese companies so far in Washington's sanctions aimed at Russia.The U.S. imposed sanctions on 20 companies based in China and Hong Kong…

Over 100 cattle have died after departing Australia on the Brahman Express. The vessel, built in 2002 and operated by Vroon, was destined for Indonesia.This is one of the highest mortality rates reported on an Australian short haul cattle shipment, states Vets Against Live Export in a blog, which notes that the mortality rate of 7.69% on the GL Kaihou’s maiden voyage in 2017 is still likely to be higher. On the GL Kaihou, 95 cattle died after the vessel’s non-slip flooring was found to be ineffective.The Australian Department of Agriculture (DAFF) stated that…

The southern Ukrainian region of Odesa, which has ports on the Black Sea and Danube River, is introducing a new export control mechanism for grain, regional governor Oleh Kiper said on Thursday."From now on, vessels (barges) will be loaded only after a preliminary analysis of the legality of the grain's origin," he said, adding that all customs declarations would have to be registered prior to the loading of export goods.The measure is aimed at strengthening discipline, accounting and reporting in foreign economic activity, he said.Analysts have said that a significant amount of grain is bough

Norway has suspended the sale of a Norwegian engine maker owned by Rolls-Royce Holdings to a Russian-controlled company while it assesses the security implications for the country’s navy and the civilian sector, the government said on Tuesday.Norway’s NSM security agency is assessing the 150 million-euro ($178 million) sale announced on Feb. 4 of Bergen Engines to a company controlled by Russia’s TMH Group, NSM and the justice ministry said.Britain’s Rolls-Royce said it was selling…

Northrop Grumman Sperry Marine has announced the launch of NAVIGAT 2500 and 3500, its next generation high accuracy, maintenance-free Fiber Optic Gyro (FOG) compasses.Suitable for all types of vessels, the NAVIGAT family of compasses provide heading measurement in all kinds of dynamic conditions with compatibility to Sperry Marine CompassNet, the first networked heading management system.NAVIGAT 2500 and NAVIGAT 3500 are based on solid-state technology with no moving parts, offering compact size and low weight.

Export Control Lists Include Key Marine Tech Categories  Each year, the U.S. Department of Commerce receives thousands of inquiries from businesses looking to export, many of which involve licensing questions. The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), together with other USG agencies, is responsible for export licensing and controls. BIS export licenses may be required for items (commodities, software, or technology) with proliferation, military, or terrorist uses, or which warrant control for other reasons.

Huntington Ingalls Industries announced today that Jon Arena has been named vice president and chief counsel of HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding division. He will succeed Jim Gildea, who retired on April 1. Arena will be a key member of the law department’s leadership team, reporting directly to Kellye Walker, executive vice president and chief legal officer, and indirectly to Newport News Shipbuilding President Jennifer Boykin. In this role, he will be responsible for providing legal advice and counsel to senior management and overseeing and coordinating the provision of legal advice to Newport News. Arena comes to HII from Boeing, where he served as senior counsel, Boeing Global Services, since 2015. Prior to Boeing, he served as a senior attorney at NASA from 2002 to 2015.

Inmarsat has provided an initial update on the launch schedule for Inmarsat-5 F3 (I-5 F3) following the failure of the preceding Proton Breeze M launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Saturday 16 May. According to an announcement by Inmarsat’s launch partner, ILS, the Proton Breeze M rocket carrying the Centenario satellite suffered a disabling anomaly during the operation of the third stage, approximately eight minutes after lift-off, resulting in the loss of the satellite and rocket. A Russian State Commission has begun the process of determining the reasons for the failure. In parallel with the State Commission, ILS will form its own Failure Review Oversight Board, which will review the State Commission’s final report and corrective action plan, in accord with U.S.

Building patrol boats is big business, especially for foreign defense needs. U.S. yards compete on a global stage in the all-important maritime security workboat arena. Patrol boats have continued to enhance bottom lines at many U.S. vessel builders this year through sales that are usually government directed or assisted. Budget cuts are a concern, but the sector’s federal funding remains high. Patrol boats are sold to other nations under the U.S. Foreign Military Sales or FMS program, authorized by the Arms Export Control Act to provide defense items.

Early in the coming year, the U.S. export control regime governing the shipbuilding supply chain will undergo a sea change with the implementation of export reform in the naval and marine categories of the U.S. Munitions List (USML) and the Commerce Control List (CCL). Reforms affecting the aerospace industry(1)  were published April 16, 2013(2)  and took effect October 15 of this year, and the final rules published on July 8, 2013 for the naval and marine categories will take effect on January 6, 2014. As previously reported,(3)  one of the goals of the export reform initiative is to protect the nation’s “crown jewels” with higher export control walls while removing restrictions on less important items and technologies in order to promote, among other things, interoperability of U.S.

The Federal Office of Economics and Export Control (BAFA) have approved Salama Fikira to operate on German flagged vessels. As an African-based service provider of international services, Salama Fikira said it is very proud to have been granted this approval to support vessels registered in Germany. Conrad Thorpe OBE, CEO of the Salama Fikira Group has welcomed this achievement by saying, "As the maritime security industry matures, the standards and regulations continue to be driven higher every year.

Global maritime security services provider the AdvanFort Company today praised new accreditation criteria for Private Maritime Security Companies (PMSCs) working on German-flagged vessels that raise required standards but are also professionally flexible. "Key to this process is that the Federal Office of Economics and Export Control (BAFA) does not require a set of documents that is formally 'carved in stone,'” said AdvanFort Vice President for Sales and Business Development Axel Tuetken.

Descartes Systems Group's announce its cloud-based messaging services now integrated with the Antwerp Port Community System's (APCS) e-Desk application. The solution, combined with the Global Logistics Network (GLN), provides declarants and terminal operators with a simple way to communicate shipment, container and status information with each other, and customs authorities, thereby reducing paperwork and improving operational efficiencies. APCS is the network of systems and solutions that facilitates the exchange of data between business-to-government (B2G) and business-to-business (B2B) participants using the port of Antwerp. APCS…

By Brian A. Barbara D. Linney & David A. Most federal government contractors are familiar with the scores of standard clauses incorporated by reference into their contracts and subcontracts as mandated by the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) and the departmental supplements such as the DFARS. Although most contracts include close to 100 standard clauses addressing a panoply of regulatory requirements, there are no standard clauses addressing compliance with the export control laws. For this reason, it is not uncommon for corporate contract administrators and purchasing agents to believe that the export control laws are synonymous with industrial security requirements and that as long as technical data to be provided to subcontractors is not classified as Confidential…

ITT Corporation, the leading manufacturer of military night vision equipment for the U.S. Armed Forces, has admitted sending classified materials overseas and will pay a $100 million penalty, Assistant Attorney General for the National Security Division Kenneth L. Wainstein and U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Virginia John L. Brownlee announced today, along with the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The corporation will pay a total monetary penalty of $100 million, one of the largest penalties ever paid in a criminal case. ITT Corporation will also be the first major defense contractor convicted of a criminal violation of the Arms Export Control Act. According to the written plea agreement to be filed in U.S.