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☆ Flight training for Chinese military pilots targeted in latest US export crackdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Karen Freifeld | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 12 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Monday added 43 entities to an export control list, including Frontier Services Group Ltd, a security and aviation company previously run by Erik Prince, for training Chinese military pilots and other activities that threaten U.S. national security. The Test Flying Academy of South Africa, a flight school under scrutiny by authorities in Britain for recruiting British ex-military pilots to train Chinese military fliers, was also added to the U.S. Commerce Department's Entity List. The aviation-related companies were listed for providing training to Chinese military pilots using Western and NATO sources, according to a rule posted for the Federal Register. Thirty-one Chinese entities in total were added to the list, some for acquiring U.S.-origin items in support of China's military modernization, such as hypersonic weapons development. Nine Chinese and Pakistani companies were added based on their contributions to Pakistan’s ballistic missile program and other weapons contributions.

Persons: Biden, Erik Prince, Prince, Karen Freifeld, Chris Sanders, Alistair Bell Organizations: Frontier Services Group Ltd, Flying Academy of South, U.S . Commerce, Frontier Services Group, United, United Arab Emirates, Federal Register, U.S, Shanghai Supercomputing Technology, Solutions, Thomson Locations: U.S, Flying Academy of South Africa, Britain, China, Kenya, Laos, United Arab Emirates, South Africa, United Kingdom, Xinjiang, China's, Latvia

The lawsuit is the SEC's second in two days against a major crypto exchange, following its case against Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, and founder Changpeng Zhao. Crypto companies including Coinbase have said SEC rules are unclear, and the regulator is overreaching by asserting oversight of their industry. Coinbase customers pulled more than $57 million from the exchange within a couple of hours of the filing, according to data firm Nansen. The SEC said Coinbase traded at least 13 crypto assets that are securities that should have been registered, including tokens such as Solana, Cardano and Polygon. The case is SEC v Coinbase Inc et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No.

Persons: Coinbase, Binance, Changpeng Zhao, Gary Gensler's, Gensler, Paul Grewal, Coinbase's, Nansen, Dado Ruvic, Gurbir Grewal, Kristin Smith, Jonathan Stempel, Hannah Lang, Michelle Price, Manya, Jason Neely, Louise Heavens, Chizu Nomiyama, Nick Zieminski Organizations: YORK, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, CNBC, Global Inc, Reuters Graphics, REUTERS, Coinbase, New, Blockchain Association, Court, Southern District of, Manya Saini, Thomson Locations: U.S, California, Manhattan, Solana, Cardano, New Jersey, Southern District, Southern District of New York, New York, Washington ,, Bengaluru

☆ House lawmakers urge US to rally allies over China Micron ban
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The move came a day after leaders of the G7 industrial democracies agreed to new initiatives to push back against Chinese economic coercion. McCaul and Gallagher urged Raimondo to work with Japan and South Korea to ensure that companies from those countries "do not take market share lost to the ban and undercut Micron." The lawmakers added that China "lashed out with an arbitrary economic embargo against one American company. Raimondo on Saturday said the United States will not tolerate China's action and is working closely with allies to address such "economic coercion." Reuters has reported Gallagher previously urged Raimondo to put trade curbs on Changxin Memory after Beijing's actions against Micron.

Persons: Joe Biden's, Michael McCaul, Mike Gallagher, Gina Raimondo, Gallagher, Raimondo, Saturday, McCaul, David Shepardson, Will Dunham Organizations: Micron Technology, Foreign Affairs Committee, Chinese Communist Party, . Commerce, Micron, Commerce Department, Embassy, Technologies, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Japan, South Korea, China, Washington, Beijing, United States, People's Republic of China, U.S

☆ Twitter's top users are posting less since Musk takeover last year, Pew Survey shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Jonathan Vanian | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Twitter's power users are still coming to the app, but fewer are posting on it since Elon Musk's acquisition late last year, according to a survey from Pew Research Center. The new data underscore the challenges facing Twitter's incoming CEO, Linda Yaccarino, who will replace Musk. The Pew survey also showed most of Twitter's content is produced by a small group of power users. "Since Musk's acquisition, 20% of U.S. adults on the site have produced 98% of all tweets by this group," the survey said. Watch: Elon Musk on Twitter's new CEO

☆ Justice Department files criminal charges in cases of American tech stolen for Russia, China and Iran
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Hannah Rabinowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The Justice Department announced on Tuesday five criminal cases against people accused of stealing or illegally diverting American technology and materials for the Russian, Chinese and Iranian governments. The man, Xiangjiang Qiao, is at large in China, according to the Justice Department. “These charges demonstrate the Justice Department’s commitment to preventing sensitive technology from falling into the hands of foreign adversaries, including Russia, China, and Iran,” said Matthew Olsen of the Justice Department’s national security division. In New York, a Greek national is charged with allegedly acquiring more than 10 different types of sensitive technologies on behalf of the Russian government. The man, Dr. Nikolaos “Nikos” Bogonikolos, was arrested in Paris last week and the US will move for his extradition, the Justice Department said.

☆ Lawmakers urge SEC to crack down on Chinese retail giant Shein over alleged forced labor
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON — Bipartisan lawmakers are urging the nation's top markets regulator to require Chinese fast-fashion giant Shein to disclose potential forced labor practices ahead of the company's possible initial public offering in the United States. "As a global company, Shein takes visibility across our entire supply chain seriously. We have zero tolerance for forced labor." "Other experts argue that it is appropriate to presuppose that any product made in the XUAR is made with forced labor." Independent coalition Shut Down Shein has also called on the SEC to deny IPO registration to Shein unless it provides proof of compliance with the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.

April 19 Reuters) - Seagate Technology Holdings (STX.O) has agreed to pay a $300 million penalty in a settlement with U.S. authorities for shipping over $1.1 billion worth of hard disk drives to China's Huawei in violation of U.S. export control laws, the U.S. Department of Commerce said on Wednesday. Seagate sold the drives to Huawei between August 2020 and September 2021 despite an August 2020 rule that restricted sales of certain foreign items made with U.S. technology to the company. Seagate shipped 7.4 million drives to Huawei for about a year after the 2020 rule took effect and became Huawei's sole supplier of hard drives, the Commerce Department said. The other two primary suppliers of hard drives ceased shipments to Huawei after the new rule took effect in 2020, the department said. Even after "its competitors had stopped selling to them ... Seagate continued sending hard disk drives to Huawei," Matthew Axelrod, the Commerce Department's assistant secretary for export enforcement said in a statement.

☆ Ongoing supply shortages threaten U.S. infrastructure and war efforts
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Lisa Baertlein | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"One of the big issues as we're trying to ramp up the military industrial base is having enough electronic components," Miller said. Companies that make war weapons like shoulder-fired Javelin and Stinger missiles are awaiting U.S. funding before starting new production for Ukraine. "Any general shortage in semiconductors will affect defense," said Brad Martin, director of Rand Corp's National Security Supply Chain Institute. On the other hand, ongoing demand for auto and farm equipment has kept stocks of microchips that act as electronic brains in that machinery tight. "As we've moved through the past year or so, we have seen gradual improvement in our supply chain, including semiconductors ... Short-term disruptions will continue to happen," GM spokesman Dan Flores told Reuters in an email.

The supply chain woes that sent costs soaring and spurred shortages of everything from toilet paper to passenger cars are easing for retail-focused industries, but remain stubbornly persistent in important growth sectors like autos, machinery, defense and non-residential construction, experts said. "One of the big issues as we're trying to ramp up the military industrial base is having enough electronic components," Miller said. Companies that make war weapons like shoulder-fired Javelin and Stinger missiles are awaiting U.S. funding before starting new production for Ukraine. "Any general shortage in semiconductors will affect defense," said Brad Martin, director of Rand Corp's National Security Supply Chain Institute. "As we've moved through the past year or so, we have seen gradual improvement in our supply chain, including semiconductors ... Short-term disruptions will continue to happen," GM spokesman Dan Flores told Reuters in an email.

☆ TikTok congressional hearing: CEO Shou Chew grilled by US lawmakers
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

TikTok, which has more than 150 million American users, was repeatedly hammered in the ongoing hearing where no lawmaker offered any support. PARENTS UNHAPPYRepresentative Diana DeGette, a Democrat, said TikTok's efforts to prevent the spread of misinformation on the platform were not working. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein 1 2 3 4 5"You gave me only generalized statements that you're investing, that you're concerned, that you're doing work. Wedbush analyst Dan Ives on Twitter said, "TikTok CEO testimony so far we would characterize as a 'mini disaster' for this key moment for TikTok. TikTok is now poster child of the US/China tensions and lawmakers have a lot of q’s with not enough concrete answers."

☆ Shou Zi Chew: Who is the TikTok CEO testifying before Congress?
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Evelyn HocksteinMarch 23 (Reuters) - TikTok Chief Executive Shou Zi Chew has mostly kept a low profile since taking the job in 2021 but on Thursday he is testifying before U.S. lawmakers, many of them suspicious of the popular Chinese-owned social media app. Chew previously worked as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs and investment firm DST, which was an early backer of ByteDance, the company that owns TikTok. TikTok pointedly said in a letter to lawmakers last year that Chew was not from China and that the company is independent of ByteDance. Chew, who is married and has two children, raised his public profile last year by creating his own TikTok account, @shou.time. Chew has told media that TikTok does not threaten U.S. interests.

☆ Credit Suisse to borrow up to nearly $54 billion from Swiss National Bank
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Jihye Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Credit Suisse announced late Wednesday it will be borrowing up to about $54 billion from Swiss National Bank. People walk by the New York headquarters of Credit Suisse on March 15, 2023 in New York City. Credit Suisse announced it will be borrowing up to 50 billion Swiss francs ($53.68 billion) from the Swiss National Bank under a covered loan facility and a short-term liquidity facility. The decision comes shortly after shares of the lender fell sharply Wednesday, hitting an all-time low for a second consecutive day after its top investor Saudi National Bank said it won't be able to provide further assistance. The latest steps will "support Credit Suisse's core businesses and clients as Credit Suisse takes the necessary steps to create a simpler and more focused bank built around client needs," the company said in an announcement.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee plans to take up legislation Tuesday that would give President Joe Biden the authority to ban TikTok, the Chinese social media app used by more than 100 million Americans. 1153 will effectively leap frog several other proposals to ban TikTok that were previously introduced in the House and Senate, but haven't yet advanced through the committee process. My bill empowers the administration to ban TikTok or any software applications that threaten U.S. national security," McCaul said in a statement Monday. "It would be unfortunate if the House Foreign Affairs Committee were to censor millions of Americans," TikTok spokeswoman Brooke Oberwetter told CNBC in an email Monday. At the time, ByteDance was looking to potentially spin off TikTok to keep the app from being shut down.

☆ ACLU urges US lawmakers not to ban TikTok, citing free speech
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A TikTok ban would "limit Americans’ political discussion, artistic expression, free exchange of ideas — and even prevent people from posting cute animal videos and memes," the ACLU said in a letter to lawmakers. Earlier this month, Biden said he was not sure if Washington would ban TikTok, which is owned by Chinese company ByteDance. Representative Michael McCaul, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, in a statement on Monday, said the legislation "empowers the administration to ban TikTok or any software applications that threaten U.S. national security. TikTok, he said, "allows (China) to manipulate and monitor its users while it gobbles up Americans' data to be used for their malign activities." TikTok officials have been on Capitol Hill this month trying to convince lawmakers of its efforts to protect data security.

☆ Exclusive: White House sets deadline for purging TikTok from federal devices
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, Feb 27 (Reuters) - The White House on Monday gave government agencies 30 days to ensure they do not have Chinese-owned app TikTok on federal devices and systems. TikTok did not immediately comment on the White House memo. Many government agencies including the White House, Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, and the State Department had banned TikTok from government devices before the vote. "My bill empowers the administration to ban TikTok or any software applications that threaten U.S. national security," Representative Mike McCaul, the committee chair, said. The White House memo said within 90 days, agencies must address any use of TikTok by IT vendors through contracts and with 120 days agencies will include a new prohibition on TikTok in all new solicitations.

☆ Soaring Costs Threaten U.S. Offshore-Wind Buildout
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-01 | by ( Katherine Blunt | Jennifer Hiller | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A vessel helps construct a large wind farm off the coast of New York, one of several being built along the East Coast. Offshore wind developers are facing financial challenges that threaten to derail several East Coast projects critical to reaching the Biden administration’s near-term clean-energy targets. Supply-chain snarls, rising interest rates and inflationary pressures are making projects far more expensive to build. Now, some developers are looking to renegotiate financing agreements to keep their projects under way.

☆ Keystone oil spill could tighten U.S. Gulf crude stocks
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Arathy Somasekhar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The Keystone line is a key artery bringing more than 600,000 barrels of Canadian crude per day (bpd) to various parts of the United States. It was shut late Wednesday after leaking more than 14,000 barrels of oil into a creek in Kansas, making it the largest crude spill in the United States in nearly a decade. While TC Energy is yet to give details on when it will restart the pipeline, a previous Keystone spill had caused the pipeline to remain shut for about two weeks. The spill in Kansas took place downstream from a key junction in Steele City, Nebraska, where Keystone splits to run into Illinois. By contrast, Gulf Coast refiners can draw on more sources for crude, both from offshore Louisiana facilities and from countries like Colombia, Mexico and Ecuador.

REUTERS/Aly Song/File PhotoNov 25 (Reuters) - The Biden administration has banned approvals of new telecommunications equipment from China's Huawei Technologies (HWT.UL) and ZTE (000063.SZ) because they pose "an unacceptable risk" to U.S. national security. "These new rules are an important part of our ongoing actions to protect the American people from national security threats involving telecommunications," FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement. ZTE, Dahua, Hytera and the Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The FCC said in June 2021 it was considering banning all equipment authorizations for all companies on the covered list. That came after a March 2021 designation of five Chinese companies on the so-called "covered list" as posing a threat to national security under a 2019 law aimed at protecting U.S. communications networks: Huawei, ZTE, Hytera Communications Corp Hikvision and Dahua.

☆ U.S. Expands Bans of Chinese Security Cameras, Network Equipment
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( Drew Fitzgerald | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Hikvision is the top worldwide seller of professional security equipment and ranks No. 5 in the U.S. The Federal Communications Commission voted 4-0 to ban sales of new telecom and surveillance equipment made by several Chinese companies, arguing that their ownership and practices threaten U.S. national security. The rule change affects 10 companies already subject to other restrictions and prohibits them from marketing or importing new products. They include security-camera makers Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co., Hytera Communications Corp. and Zhejiang Dahua Technology Co. and telecom equipment makers Huawei Technologies Co. and ZTE Corp.

Competitively priced South American offerings have recently undercut U.S. business and the upcoming Brazilian soybean harvest looms large, increasing pressure on U.S. soybean exporters’ performance through the end of the year. The U.S. soybean harvest is likely picking up this week, so any logistical interruptions are poorly timed. Soybean export inspections are already lagging more than expected, having fallen below the range of trade estimates in three of the last five weeks. Argentine farmers for the first time in six years may increase soybean area for the upcoming season, potentially boosting output more than 15% on the year. Brazil’s recent record-large corn harvest has lifted shipments to or near all-time highs in the latest two months.

☆ Fact Check-King Charles III did not sign proclamation stating Donald Trump won 2020 U.S. Presidential election, or threaten Joe Biden and Kamala Harris with war
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Britain’s King Charles did not sign a proclamation stating that Donald Trump won the 2020 U.S. Presidential election and is therefore the country’s rightful leader. He also did not threaten U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris with war if they refused “to vacate the premises within 48 hours”. King Charles III signs a proclamation stating that Donald Trump won the 2020 Presidential election and is the rightful President by Law. At no point does the document mention Donald Trump, the U.S. Presidential election or a threat of war. King Charles did not sign a proclamation stating that Trump won the 2020 election, nor did he threaten Joe Biden and Kamala Harris with war.

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