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Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) added 26 entities to the Entity List, while giving relief to one Canadian firm for substantive reforms to its business practices.
Under the destinations of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) (6), Egypt (1), Pakistan (16), and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) (3), the additions are related to alleged violations of export controls, involvement in weapons programs of concern, and evasion of U.S. sanctions and export controls on Russia and Iran.
Sandvine Incorporated, an entity listed under the destinations of Canada, India, Japan, Malaysia, Sweden, and the UAE, has been removed following significant reforms to address and prevent the misuse of its technology in ways that undermine democracy and abuse human rights
Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has issued an updated Maritime Oil Industry Advisory for both government and private sector actors involved in the global maritime industry.
Prepared by the Price Cap Coalition, (G7, the European Union, Australia, and New Zealand, the Advisory makes ":reccomendations" which are routinely ignored by the relevant players, notably buyers China and India, Convenience Registries (Liberia, Maldives, Eswatini and the like), as well as firms located in G-7, EU or other third countries who disregard "advisories" when there is money to be made.
Until the Coalition is willing to take concrete action to halt the shipping in unsafe and underinsured vessels, likely after a catastrophic spill, these exercises are having little to no effect on the flow of Russian Oil into the world market.
The second day of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) General Council (GC) meeting concluded on a bleak note, with little to no progress on key issues, including agriculture, the second half of the proposed fisheries agreement, and ongoing concerns over reforming the dispute settlement system (DSS), according to people familiar with the discussions.
Several members reportedly raised sharp concerns about the lack of progress in elements such as the "scope of the mechanism" and the "standard of review." Developing countries—Egypt, India, Chad (on behalf of the African Group), and South Africa—emphasized the importance of accessibility.
A proposed decision by World Trade Organization (WTO) Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala to establish a formal process under the Committee on Agriculture Special Session (CoA SS) to jumpstart agriculture negotiations has caused unease among several members and raised questions about the integrity of the process, according to people familiar with the developments.
Members are working to understand the implications of formalizing the process and appointing facilitators, given that meetings of the Doha negotiating body on agriculture are conventionally held informally. The CoA SS refers to the Doha agriculture negotiating body, which operates under the overarching mandate of the Doha Trade Negotiations Committee.
The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security Regulations and Procedures Technical Advisory Committee held their quarterly meeting Tuesday, with a wary eye towards the year end and potential for a change of regime.
The United States, South Korea and Japan announced the formation of a Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team (MSMT) on North Korea as an alternative to the dissolved U.N. panel of experts that had monitored sanctions enforcement until April.
VOA reports that members of the former U.N. panel of experts said the new mechanism could function effectively but might be hurt by the lack of a United Nations mandate. China and Russia, two of the five veto-wielding Security Council permanent members, will not participate in the newly formed team.
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