International Trade Law News

As a result of this week's ousting of the President of Kyrgyzstan by the opposition, the State Department's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) today issued the following announcement regarding delays in license applications for the export of ITAR-controlled items to Kyrgyzstan:

In response to recent events in the Kyrgyz Republic (Kyrgyzstan), DDTC wishes to inform exporters that although there is no current U.S. or UN arms embargo on Kyrgyzstan, the final decision of license applications for the export of U.S. Munitions List (USML) items to Kyrgyzstan received from this date or currently in the review process may be delayed. License applications will continue to be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, but approval should not be assumed. We encourage exporters to take the current situation into account and if applying for a new license to export or re-export USML items to Kyrgyzstan, that the license application provide detailed information on the end-use and end-user of the USML items.

The PDF version of the DDTC's announcement, which also includes the text of the White House statement on Kyrgyzstan, can be found here.

Labels: ITAR, State Department

The U.S. Department of State today designated two entities in North Korea under Executive Order 13382, which authorizes the blocking of property of persons engaged in proliferation activities and their support networks.

The following is a brief a summary of these entities:

• General Bureau of Atomic Energy (GBAE) -- located in Pyongyang, oversees the North Korean government's nuclear program and manages operations at the Yongbyon Nuclear Research Center.

• Korea Tangun Trading Corporation -- also located in Pyongyang, is subordinate to North Korea’s Second Academy of Natural Sciences and is primarily responsible for the procurement of commodities and technologies to support North Korea’s defense research and development programs and procurement, including materials that are controlled under the Missile Technology Control Regime or the Australia Group.

The two entities designated were also designated by the United Nations in July 2009 for their involvement in North Korea’s WMD and missile programs.

As a result of today's designations, these two entities have been added to OFAC's SDN List, assets of these entities that are within U.S. jurisdiction must be blocked and U.S. persons are prohibited from conducting any transactions with these entities.

Labels: North Korea, OFAC, State Department

On January 5, 2006, the State Department published a notice in the Federal Register announcing that the U.S. has imposed sanctions on 24 foreign entities pursuant to the Iran and Syria Nonproliferation Act. The Iran and Syria Nonproliferation Act (P.L. 109-112) provides for the imposition of penalties on entities and individuals that transfer to Iran or Syria equipment and technology controlled under multilateral export control lists or otherwise having the potential to make a material contribution to the development of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) or cruise or ballistic missile systems.

The list, which is reprinted below, includes four Russian companies and others in China, Iran, Iraq, Malaysia, Mexico, North Korea, Sudan and Syria:

1. China National Electronic Import-Export Company (CEIEC) (China) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
2. China National Aero-Technology Import and Export Company (CATIC) (China) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
3. Zibo Chemet Equipment Company (China) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
4. Defense Industries Organization (DIO) (Iran) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
5. Iran Electronics Industries (IEI) (Iran) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
6. Sanam Industrial Group (SIG) (Iran) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
7. NAB Export Company (Iran) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
8. Abu Hamadi (Iraq) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
9. Kal Al-Zuhiry (Iraq);
10. Korea Mining Development Corporation (KOMID) (North Korea) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
11. Target Airfreight (Malaysia) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
12. Aerospace Logistics Services (Mexico) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
13. Arif Durrani (Pakistan);
14. Rosoboronexport (Russia) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
15. Kolomna Design Bureau of Machine-Building (KBM) (Russia) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
16. Tula Design Bureau of Instrument Building (KBP) (Russia) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
17. Alexey Safonov (Russia);
18. Al Zarga Optical and Electronics Co. (Sudan) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
19. Giad Industrial Complex (Sudan) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
20. Yarmouk Industrial Complex (Sudan) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
21. Army Supply Bureau (Syria) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
22. Industrial Establishment of Defense (IED) (Syria) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof;
23. Ministry of Defense (Syria) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof; and
24. Scientific Studies and Research Center (SSRC) (Syria) and any successor, sub-unit, or subsidiary thereof.

These sanctions have the following effect: (1) no department or agency of the U.S. Government may procure, or enter into any contract for the procurement of, any goods, technology, or services from these companies; (2) no department or agency of the U.S. Government may provide any assistance to these parties; (3) no U.S. Government sales to the foreign persons of any item on the United States Munitions List are permitted, and all sales to these persons of any defense articles, defense services, or design and construction services under the Arms Export Control Act are terminated; and (4) no new individual licenses shall be granted for the transfer to these foreign persons of items the export of which is controlled under the Export Administration Act of 1979 or the Export Administration Regulations, and any existing such licenses are suspended.

The State Department maintains a website containing a list of entities sanctioned under the Iran and Syria Nonproliferation Act at www.state.gov/t/isn/c15234.htm. However, note that the title of this page has not been changed to reflect the correct name of the law or to include the newly sanctioned entities.

Labels: State Department