Vinson & Elkins hired Damara Chambers, previously at Covington & Burling, as a partner and co-leader of the firm's national security practice, Vinson & Elkins said in a news release. "Chambers focuses her practice on national security reviews conducted by [the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States] and other agencies, including the Defense Security Service and the Department of Energy in connection with the mitigation of foreign ownership, control or influence (FOCI), and the State Department in connection with reviews pursuant to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations," the firm said.

As the Commerce Department prepares to issue export controls on emerging technologies, U.S. industries are urging the agency to limit controls on artificial intelligence and 3D printing, according to industry comments gathered by Jessica Blum Sanchez, the trade compliance manager at Accenture Federal Services.

John Peterson and Brunella Zuppone were arrested June 26 and charged with "conspiracy to violate and attempted violations of the Arms Export Control Act (AECA) and International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR)," the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida said in a June 28 news release. The pair are alleged to have tried to "illegally export to Argentina defense articles, specifically, parts and components for AR-15 assault rifles, which were smuggled across international borders by a transnational weapons trafficking group in Argentina," the Justice Department said. Neither had required licenses from the State Department for exporting such goods, it said.

The Senate Committee on Foreign Relations advanced a bill on June 25 that would repeal the ban on all exports to Cyprus that fall on the U.S. Munitions List. The change would prohibit the State Department from denying exports, re-exports or transfers of defense items and services to Cyprus as long as Cyprus is the end-user, the bill states. The repeal would advance U.S. “security interests” in Europe by helping Cyprus reduce its dependence on “other countries” for defense products, including countries that “pose challenges” to the U.S., the bill said. The change comes as part of a larger bill that would require the State Department to submit reports to Congress on Russian interference in Cyprus, Greece and Israel. The bill would also call on the Trump administration to impose sanctions on Turkey and Russia if Turkey carries out its plan to buy an S-400 air defense system from Russia.

Winston & Strawn hired Christopher Monahan, previously with Crowell & Moring, as a partner, Winston said in a June 24 news release. Monahan "counsels clients across a broad scope of industries regarding compliance with the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), the Export Administration Regulations (EAR), the sanctions programs administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), and on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA)," the firm said.

The State Department’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs imposed statutory debarments under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations on 23 people who violated the Arms Export Control Act, the department said in a notice scheduled to be published in the June 6 Federal Register. The 23 people have been convicted of violating the AECA, the notice said, and are banned from receiving export licenses for defense products or services for three years after the conviction. The 23 people must also request reinstatement from the State Department before completing any transactions subject to the ITAR, the notice said, and are allowed to request reinstatement one year after the debarment.

Export Compliance Daily is providing readers with some of the top stories for May 28-31 in case they were missed.

The Department of State published its spring 2019 regulatory agenda. The agenda includes a new mention of a proposal to amend the International Traffic in Arms Regulations to include definitions for "activities that are not exports, re-exports, or retransfers." The activities include "launching items into space; providing technical data to U.S. persons within the United States or within a single country abroad; and moving a defense article between the states, possessions, and territories of" the U.S., State said. The proposal also "removes from ITAR licensing requirements the electronic transmission and storage of unclassified technical data via foreign communications infrastructure when the data is secured sufficiently to prevent access by foreign persons." Under the proposal, State would also amend the ITAR to create definitions for “access information” and revise definitions of release to include “the improper provision of access information to foreign persons.” State is aiming to issue the proposal in September, it said.

The agenda also includes a rule that would revise Categories I, II and III of the U.S. Munitions List to include items that gives the U.S. a “critical military or intelligence advantage or otherwise warrant control at the highest level.” The rule states that exports of “commercially available firearms and ammunition,” removed from Category I and III, will continue to be controlled under the Bureau of Industry and Security’s Commerce Control List. State said the transition from the Munitions List to the CCL “will result in a net reduction in regulatory burden for the affected manufacturing and export community.” State aims to issue the rule in May 2019, it said.

The Department of Commerce published its spring 2019 regulatory agenda for the Bureau of Industry and Security. The agenda continues to mention an upcoming a long-awaited proposed rulemaking involving parties’ responsibilities under the Export Administration Regulations in a routed export transaction, saying the proposal will be published in May 2019. Sharron Cook, a senior policy export analyst for BIS, said in April the rule change will help solve some of the bigger frustrations with the current regulations faced by export forwarders (see 1904170064). BIS is aiming to issue the proposal in May, it said.

The State Department designated 22 people, entities or their subsidiaries under the Iran, North Korea, and Syria Nonproliferation Act for trading goods that may be used for weapons of mass destruction or ballistic missile systems, the department said in a Federal Register notice to be published May 22. The additions include people and entities associated or located in China, Iran, Russia and Syria.