Every Monday we post the highlights out of last week’s FCC Export/Import Daily Update (“The Daily Bugle”). Send out every business day to approximately 7,500 readers of changes to defense and high-tech trade laws and regulations, The Daily Bugle is a free daily newsletter from Full Circle Compliance, edited by James E. Bartlett III, Alexander Witt, Salvatore Di Misa, and Elina Tsapouri.
We check the following sources daily: Federal Register, Congressional Record, Commerce/AES, Commerce/BIS, DHS/CBP, DOE/NRC, DOJ/ATF, DoD/DSS, DoD/DTSA, FAR/DFARS, State/DDTC, Treasury/OFAC, White House, and similar websites of Australia, Canada, U.K., and other countries and international organizations. Due to space limitations, we do not post Arms Sales notifications, Denied Party listings, or Customs AD/CVD items. To subscribe, click here.
Last week’s highlights of The Daily Bugle included in this edition are:
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- UK Government Publishes the Consultation Outcome About the “Trade with the US”, The Daily Bugle; Monday, 02 March 2020; Item #5.
- UK ECJU Announces Webinar on Recent Changes to OGELs on 16 March; The Daily Bugle; Tuesday, 03 March 2020; Item #4.
- Commerce: Statement from U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross on UN “Blacklist” of Companies; The Daily Bugle, Wednesday, 04 March 2020; Item #2.
- EU Extends Sanctions Against Libya; The Daily Bugle, Friday, 06 March; Item #5.
- Treasury/OFAC Issues Nicaragua-related General Licenses and FAQ; The Daily Bugle; Friday, 06 March 2020; Item #4.
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1. UK Government Publishes the Consultation Outcome About the “Trade with the US”
(Source: UK GOV, 2 March 2020) [Excerpts]
On 2 March 2020, the UK Government published the Consultation Outcome” About the “Trade with the US”. This document sets out the strategic approach for securing agreement with the US. UK-US total trade was valued at £220.9 billion in the last year, including 19.8% of all our exports.
The Government’s analysis shows a UK-US FTA could increase trade between both countries by £15.3 billion in the long run,in comparison to 2018, and increase UK workers’ wages by £1.8 billion.
The US is a developed, high-wage economy with high standards and is our top source of investment and the top destination for UK investment. We already have over £700 billion invested in each other’s economies, and every day over a million Britons and over a million Americans work for companies from the other nation.
Removing trade barriers with the US could deliver huge gains, especially for the 30,000 Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) across the UK already trading with the US and open opportunities to others. For example, the US currently levies £451 million in tariffs on UK exports each year.
The world-leading agreement the UK wants will also be geared towards maximising the UK’s reach in emerging fields like global data flows and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Professional services, food processing and car manufacturing are among the sectors that could also benefit.
The Government has been clear that when we are negotiating trade agreements, we will protect the National Health Service (NHS). Our objectives reinforce this.
The NHS will not be on the table. The price the NHS pays for drugs will not be on the table. The services the NHS provides will not be on the table. The NHS is not, and never will be, for sale to the private sector, whether overseas or domestic. Any agreement will ensure high standards and protections for consumers and workers, and will not compromise on our high environmental protection, animal welfare and food standards.
The Outline Approach published in Chapter 2 sets out the UK’s overall objectives for these negotiations, enabling us to begin substantive discussions with the US. These objectives are also informed by one of the biggest consultations ever undertaken with the UK public, businesses and civil society, covering trade with the US, Australia, New Zealand, and our potential accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
The US is the world’s largest economy, our closest security and defence partner and one of our oldest friends. We are the biggest investors in each other’s economies. We have worked together, from the Bretton Woods Conference to the UN Security Council, to shape the world order since the Second World War. An FTA represents a strategic opportunity to augment and codify our strong trade, investment and economic relationships, bringing us closer to our largest bilateral trading partner and the world’s economic powerhouse. This agreement should support the further development of a close defence industrial partnership between the UK and the US in the defence sector, recognising that we are already each other’s most important suppliers of imported defence equipment, and that this relationship both supports jobs and investment, and delivers world class capabilities to our armed forces as they fight together in defence of our national interests.
The agreement should reduce barriers to defence sales, in particular by encouraging deeper and faster sharing of technology, and encourage investment in each other’s industrial base.
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2. UK ECJU Announces Webinar on Recent Changes to OGELs on 16 March
(Source: UK ECJU, 3 Mar 2020)
Register now for:
Open General Licences – clarification on recent changes by the Export Control Joint Unit
This webinar on 16 March at 11am is for exporters of military and dual use items who need more information on recent amendments and the new open general licences.
The webinar will explain:
– why we made these changes
– which licences have been changed
– what action you need to take to remain compliant with export control legislation
Dean Gallacher, Head of UK and EU Policy in the Export Control Joint Unit will lead the webinar and answer questions.
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3. Commerce: Statement from U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross on UN “Blacklist” of Companies
(Source: Commerce, 3 Mar 2020)
On February 12, 2020, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights issued a “blacklist” of companies, including several U.S. companies, that do business in Israel-controlled territories. Boycotts against Israel and companies doing business with and in Israel are contrary to longstanding U.S. policy. The UN “blacklist” is anti-business, seeks to isolate Israel, has no factual basis or legal force whatsoever, and should not be adhered to in any respect. The Government of the United States fully supports the U.S. companies identified on the list and encourages all U.S. businesses to continue to work with and invest in Israeli as well as Palestinian communities.
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4. EU Extends Sanctions Against Libya
(Source: Official Journal of the European Union, 5 Mar 2020)
* Council Implementing Regulation
Council Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/371 of 5 March 2020 implementing Article 21(5) of Regulation (EU) 2016/44 concerning restrictive measures in view of the situation in Libya
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5. Treasury/OFAC Issues Nicaragua-related General Licenses and FAQ
(Source: Treasury/OFAC, 5 Mar 2020)
The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is issuing Nicaragua-related General License No. 1 “Official Business of the United States Government” and General License No. 2“Authorizing the Wind Down of Transactions Involving the Nicaraguan National Police.” OFAC is also issuing a new Nicaragua-related frequently asked question.