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The Commerce Department, which oversees export controls, is working on an update of export restrictions first released last year. "The PRC has been expecting an update around the one year anniversary, based on conversations with administration officials," the U.S. official said, using the abbreviation for People's Republic of China. U.S. officials provided the information to Chinese counterparts in recent weeks, the official said, which Reuters is reporting for the first time. The Biden administration has also sent a series of high-level officials to China, including Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo in August. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen also gave Chinese officials a warning in July about restrictions on U.S. investment in China released in August.

Persons: Florence Lo, Biden, Gina Raimondo, Jake Sullivan, Wang Yi, Liu Pengyu, Peter Harrell, Janet Yellen, Xi, ASML, Alexandra Alper, Karen Freifeld, Chris Sanders, Anna Driver Organizations: REUTERS, Beijing, U.S, Commerce Department, People's, Reuters, National, Foreign, of Commerce, White House, Economic Cooperation, Thomson Locations: China, WASHINGTON, People's Republic of China, Beijing, U.S, United States, Washington, Asia, San Francisco, Bali, India, Netherlands, Japan

☆ US Hits Chinese, Russian Firms Over Moscow Military Aid
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By David Shepardson and Alexandra AlperWASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden's administration on Monday imposed new trade restrictions on 11 Chinese and five Russian companies, accusing some of supplying components to make drones for Russia's war effort in Ukraine. The Commerce Department, which oversees export policy, added a total of 28 firms, including some Finnish and German companies, to a trade blacklist, making it harder for U.S. suppliers to ship them technology. The investigation found that Hong Kong-based exporter Asia Pacific Links Ltd. has been among the most important suppliers to Russia's drone program. The firm, along with import company SMT iLogic, were the target of an earlier round of U.S. sanctions in May. The United States has aggressively used a trade blacklist known as the entity list to target China's tech sector and attempt to stymie Russia's war in Ukraine.

Persons: David Shepardson, Alexandra Alper WASHINGTON, Joe Biden's, Alan Estevez, Barack Obama, Alexandra Alper, Rami Ayyub Organizations: The Commerce Department, China's, Links Ltd, Technology Center, Russia's Main Intelligence, General Staff, Reuters, Royal United Services Institute, Special Technology, Asia Pacific Links, SMT, Commerce, Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Company, Commerce Department, U.S, United Locations: Ukraine, Russian, London, St . Petersburg, Russia, Hong Kong, Iran, United States

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is embraced by U.S. President Joe Biden in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, September 21, 2023. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Sept 25 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden's administration on Monday imposed new trade restrictions on 11 Chinese and five Russian companies, accusing some of supplying components to make drones for Russia's war effort in Ukraine. The firm, along with import company SMT iLogic, were the target of an earlier round of U.S. sanctions in May. Another six Chinese entities were added for allegedly procuring aerospace parts for the Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Company that are used to make drones used by Iran to attack oil tankers in the Middle East and by Russia in Ukraine, according to the Commerce Department. The United States has aggressively used a trade blacklist known as the entity list to target China's tech sector and attempt to stymie Russia's war in Ukraine.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Joe Biden, Kevin Lamarque, Joe Biden's, Alan Estevez, Barack Obama, David Shepardson, Alexandra Alper, Rami Ayyub Organizations: U.S, White, REUTERS, Rights, The Commerce Department, China's, Links Ltd, Technology Center, Russia's Main Intelligence, General Staff, Reuters, Royal United Services Institute, Special Technology, Asia Pacific Links, SMT, Commerce, Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Company, Commerce Department, United, Thomson Locations: Washington, Ukraine, Russian, London, St . Petersburg, Russia, Hong Kong, Iran, United States

"I think the potential for unintended harm from the use of AI exists in any federal agency and in any use of AI," said DHS Chief Information Officer Eric Hysen. And when we interact with people, it can be during some of the most critical times of their lives." Historically, academics have flagged the dangers of AI regarding racial profiling and because it can still make errors while identifying relationships in complex data. The guidelines will also require that facial recognition matches discovered using AI technology be manually reviewed by human analysts to ensure their accuracy, according to a new directive that the agency plans to release alongside the AI memo later on Thursday. Another area where DHS has already uses AI technology extensively is on the southern border, where the agency has deployed more than 200 surveillance cameras, said Hysen.

Persons: Marco Bello, Alejandro Mayorkas, Eric Hysen, Hysen, Alexandra Alper, Christopher Bing, Chizu Organizations: U.S . Department of Homeland Security, REUTERS, Rights, Department of Homeland Security, Customs, Border Patrol, DHS, Thomson Locations: Mexico, U.S, Del Rio , Texas, California's San Isidro Port

Oleg Panteleev, head of the AviaPort aviation think-tank in Moscow, said Russian airlines have "solved the problem" of operating under Western sanctions. When those firms stopped providing services – Lufthansa Technik said it suspended sales to Russia from Feb. 28, 2022 – Russian airlines turned to a pool of far smaller suppliers. Ivan Melnicov, chief executive of Air Rock and another aircraft parts distributor in Moldova called Aerostage Services, denied selling products to Russia. Most of the shipments listed in Russian customs records as having been made by Air Rock and Aerostage took circuitous routes, transiting through the UAE or Kyrgyzstan. He said Skyparts had procured one of the Northrop Grumman parts from a U.S. supplier but denied ever sending it to Russia.

Persons: Paul Hanna, Northrop, Oleg Panteleev, Kirill Skuratov, Northrop Grumman, Ivan Melnicov, Melnicov, Aerostage, Kafolati Komil, Mahmadbashir Yakubov, Kafolati, Skyparts FZCO, Lisa Barrington, Saeed Abdulloev, Skyparts, Karine Bukrey, Ramses Turizm, Bukrey's, Ramazan, Bukrey, Akpinar, Nordwind, Valery Pashaev, Pashaev, Maurice Tamman, David Clarke, Daniel Flynn Organizations: Ural Airlines Airbus, Palma de Mallorca, REUTERS, Rights, U.S ., Northrop Grumman, Central Asia, Airbus, Boeing, Ural Airlines, Northrop, United Arab Emirates, Western, Reuters, of Commerce, European Union, Russian, S7 Airlines, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Aeroflot, Lufthansa Technik, Engineering, Rock Solutions, Air Rock, Aerostage Services, Airlines, UAE, Istikloliyat, Skyparts, Nordwind Airlines, Thomson Locations: Palma de, Spain, Russian, Yekaterinburg, U.S, Moscow, Russia, Central, Ukraine, Tajikistan, UAE, Turkey, China, Kyrgyzstan, Swiss, Germany, Moldova, Air, Moldovan, Saudi Arabia, Komilchon, Ural, Dubai, United Arab, Turkish, Antalya, Nusret, Technic, New York

☆ Drag queens and the long, vibrant history of drag in the US
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( Scottie Andrew | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

Barbara Alper/Getty ImagesDrag has become increasingly visible in recent years through mainstream shows like “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and popular public events such as drag brunches, drag bingo and drag queen story hours, in which drag performers read children’s books to young audiences, often at libraries. Some trans drag queens who received hormone injections were “strongly deplored by stage impersonators who (said) that the whole point of female impersonation depends on maleness,” Newton wrote. But “Drag Race” has also skewed viewers’ definition of drag – no drag kings have ever competed on the series, Testa noted, and the judges have long imposed somewhat traditional beauty standards upon contestants. Pickle reads from a book during the Drag Queen Story Hour program at a Los Angeles library in 2019. These lawmakers falsely claim that drag performers “groom” or sexualize children, of which there is also no evidence.

WASHINGTON, April 28 (Reuters) - The Biden administration outlined efforts this week to address growing U.S. national security concerns on foreign companies' handling of Americans' data. Concerns about Chinese-owned TikTok have sparked new efforts in Congress to boost powers to address it or potentially ban the popular short video sharing app. Under Commerce Secretary for Industry and Security Alan Estevez was among those addressing information and communications technology supply (ICTS) chain threats, the department said. "I think it is a top priority and we need to move with urgency," U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said at a Senate hearing on Wednesday of the legislative effort. Days before then President Donald Trump left office in 2021, the Commerce Department issued aimed at addressing ICTS concerns posed by China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba and Venezuela.

☆ US puts trade curbs on 5 Chinese firms over alleged role in Uyghur repression
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, March 28 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Tuesday imposed new trade restrictions on five Chinese companies for allegedly aiding in the repression of the Uyghur Muslim minority but China rejected the accusation as "lies" aimed at constraining it. According to Hikvision's 2021 half-year report, at least four of the companies facing new curbs belong to the Chinese surveillance camera maker including Luopu Haishi Dingxin Electronic Technology Co, Moyu Haishi Electronic Technology Co, Pishan Haishi Yong'an Electronic Technology Co and Urumqi Haishi Xin'an Electronic Technology Co.Yutian Haishi Meitian Electronic Technology Co Ltd was also added. "The idea that there exists so-called repression of Muslim minorities in Xinjiang has long been debunked," Mao said at a regular briefing on Wednesday. She also said that China would take all necessary measures to defend the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese firms. The United States has increasingly used the list to target Chinese firms.

☆ US slaps trade curbs on 5 Chinese firms over alleged role in Uyghur repression
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, March 28 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Tuesday imposed new trade restrictions on five Chinese companies for allegedly aiding in Beijing's repression of the Uyghur Muslim minority group. According to Hikvision's 2021 half-year report, at least four of the companies facing new curbs belong to the Chinese surveillance camera maker including Luopu Haishi Dingxin Electronic Technology Co, Moyu Haishi Electronic Technology Co, Pishan Haishi Yong'an Electronic Technology Co and Urumqi Haishi Xin'an Electronic Technology Co.Yutian Haishi Meitian Electronic Technology Co Ltd was also added. Being added to the entity list means U.S. suppliers must get a special and difficult-to-obtain license before shipping goods to the targeted companies. Washington has increasingly used the entity list to target Chinese firms. Reporting by Alexandra Alper, David Shepardson, and Karen Freifeld; Editing by Franklin Paul and Stephen CoatesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Killer drones and multi-billion dollar deals: Turkey's rapidly-growing defense industry is boosting its global clout
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Drones aren't the only thing elevating Turkey's status as a growing player in the global defense industry. Turnover for the country's defense industry as a whole last year was $10 billion, according to Turkey's Presidency of Defense Industries. And the investment shows in the numbers: research and development in Turkey's defense sector "recently increased by 30 percent," the Atlantic Council's report wrote. Turkish defense manufacturers say they are booked for the next several years with orders to help replenish NATO stockpiles. Those firms also have high demand from Turkey's military alone — it is, after all, the second-largest military in NATO after the United States.

☆ Biden administration adds 14 Chinese firms to unverified list
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Being added to the list can potentially start a 60-day clock that could trigger much tougher penalties. ECOM International and HK P&W Industry Co Ltd were among those added to the list. They and the Chinese Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment. “Enforcing our export controls is a crucial part of protecting American national security,” U.S. Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves said in a statement following the announcement. Reporting by Alexandra Alper and Karen Freifeld; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Video footage from a drone flying down a street in Antakya’s Old City, which is covered in rubble and surrounded by collapsed buildings. Called Saray Street by locals, this stretch was once lined with more than 70 shops, restaurants and other businesses. The destruction on Saray Street is a fraction of all that was lost in Old City. Video clip of Saray Street before the quakes, showing stores and patrons during the holiday season. Damaged or destroyed historic or cultural landmark Map showing the boundaries of Old City and labeling cultural landmarks that were damaged or destroyed.

Courts blocked a prior bid by the Trump administration to ban the app in part on the grounds that such a move violated free speech protections. Courts struck down former President Donald Trump's bid to block TikTok in 2020 with an executive order that granted the Commerce Department similar authorities as the RESTRICT act. But the bill will likely provide no immediate solutions for those calling for a ban on the app. Some experts said using the new legal tools to ban TikTok could still invite First Amendment challenges. "And there will most likely be a legal challenge if its used to ban TikTok."

[1/6] Pills are pictured at a fentanyl pill manufacturing center and a methamphetamine lab seized by the Mexican Army, in Culiacan, in Sinaloa state, Mexico February 14, 2023. Reuters GraphicsThe hiked up figures are not credible, say two former senior law enforcement figures in Mexico and the United States, as well as two serving Mexican security sources. The description of the drugs the Mexicans say they seized in the labs also raises questions about the accuracy of the lab data, said two of the security sources. Laboratory busts, often in hard-to-reach mountainous areas, have historically been a key metric for how active Mexican security forces have been in targeting drug trafficking groups. In 2022, FGR reported 18 lab raids by all security agencies, compared to the army's count of 492 raids.

☆ Blackface, booze, and blurred lines at the $2 billion tech firm Rokt
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Jack Newsham | Madeline Stone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +25 min

A cropped version of an image shared with Rokt employees at the 2020 meeting. Buchanan told Insider. "We think it's important that we stand up and fight it," he told Insider when asked about that message. In an email, Viles told Insider that he hasn't had any day-to-day involvement with Rokt since 2020, when he did some contract work. Mert Alper Dervis/Anadolu Agency via Getty ImagesOne employee told Insider they were encouraged to post the photos and proclaim 2023 to be Rokt's "best year yet."

WASHINGTON/SAN FRANCISCO, March 15 (Reuters) - A chip plant that South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) is building in Taylor, Texas, will cost the world's biggest memory chipmaker over $25 billion, up more than $8 billion from initial forecasts, according to two people familiar with the matter. The increase in cost is primarily due to inflation, the people said, declining to be named because the information was not public. "The higher construction cost is about 80% of the cost increase," one of the sources said. Meanwhile, Intel Corp (INTC.O) announced a $20 billion chip factory in Ohio that it could expand to cost up to $100 billion. Samsung, the world's No.2 contract chip manufacturer, announced its Taylor, Texas, plant in 2021.

The Netherlands' government on Wednesday said it plans new restrictions on exports of semiconductor technology to protect national security, joining the United State's effort to curb chip exports to China. Dutch Trade Minister Liesje Schreinemacher announced the decision in a letter to parliament, saying the restrictions will be introduced before the summer. It specified one technology that will be impacted is "DUV" lithography, the second-most advanced machines that ASML sells to computer chip manufacturers. Major ASML customers such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and Intel are engaged in capacity expansions. ASML has never sold its most advanced "EUV" machines to customers in China, and the bulk of its DUV sales in China go to relatively less advanced chipmakers.

March 8 (Reuters) - The Dutch government is set to inform parliament as soon as Wednesday that it plans to draft additional rules restricting exports of semiconductor technology to protect national security, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. The move follows months of discussions between the Netherlands, the U.S. and Japan, in which Washington has tried to get allies to adopt similar restrictions to those it introduced in October aimed at hobbling China's ability to make semiconductors and to slow its military advances. Reporting by Toby Sterling Editing by Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

March 7 (Reuters) - Nvidia Corp (NVDA.O), Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD.O) and other tech firms are scrambling to assess whether they must halt sales to units of China's Inspur Group Ltd after its addition to a U.S. export blacklist last week. The United States last week added Inspur to its trade blacklist for allegedly acquiring U.S.-origin items in support of the China's military modernization efforts. Executives from AMD and Nvidia were questioned about dealings with Inspur Group Co Ltd. at an investor conference on Monday. An Nvidia spokesperson declined to comment beyond her remarks. An AMD spokesperson did not return a request for additional comment on AMD Chief Technology Officer Mark Papermaster's remarks made at the same conference.

☆ Exclusive: Nvidia's plans for sales to Huawei imperiled if U.S. tightens Huawei curbs-draft
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-04 | by ( Alexandra Alper | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/3] The logo of Nvidia Corporation is seen during the annual Computex computer exhibition in Taipei, Taiwan May 30, 2017. Nvidia's plans to sell to Huawei have not been previously reported. Reuters could not learn the details of the specific policy change whose impact was being assessed in the report. The report suggested Qualcomm would likely suffer a "moderate economic impact" from the change in policy, in contrast to Huawei. Indeed, the loss of access to Qualcomm's modem chips would have a bigger impact on Huawei, the report forecast, since Huawei "relies heavily on Qualcomm's modem chips to support its smart phone offering."

☆ U.S. outbound investment measure should not be overly broad, Biden official says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, March 2 (Reuters) - The Biden administration is considering a pilot program to address risks about outbound investment in China, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said Thursday. Anything that's overly broad hurts American workers and the economy." Raimondo told Reuters after the forum that it was not clear when the administration will finalize any outbound investment restrictions. Efforts to incorporate an outbound investment screening plan in legislation failed in Congress last year. Departments of Treasury and Commerce $10 million each to identify what it would take to implement a program to address national security threats from "outbound investment" in certain sectors.

REUTERS/Eric ThayerMarch 2 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Thursday added 37 companies to a trade blacklist, including units of Chinese genetics company BGI (300676.SZ) and Chinese cloud computing firm Inspur, in a move that promises to further ratchet up tensions with Beijing. The Commerce Department, which oversees export controls, added BGI Research and BGI Tech Solutions (Hongkong), over allegations that the units pose a "significant risk" to contributing to Chinese government surveillance. The Commerce Department accused Inspur of acquiring and attempting to acquire U.S. goods to support China's military modernization efforts. Commerce added 26 other Chinese entities to the list - which makes it hard for targeted companies to receive shipments of U.S. goods from suppliers. In 2020, the Commerce Department added two units of BGI Group, the world’s largest genomics company, to its economic blacklist over allegations it conducted genetic analyses used to further the repression of China’s minority Uyghurs.

☆ U.S. approved $23 bln worth of licenses to ship U.S. tech to blacklisted Chinese companies early last year- lawmaker
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Feb 28 (Reuters) - The Biden administration approved more than $23 billion worth of licenses for companies to ship U.S. technology to blacklisted Chinese companies in the first quarter of last year, Republican Congressman Michael McCaul said on Tuesday. McCaul also said the Commerce Department, which oversees export controls, denied only 8 percent of license requests to sell to those companies during the January to March period last year. Reporting by Karen Freifeld and Alexandra Alper; Editing by Chizu NomiyamaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ U.S. policy allowing some U.S. tech shipments to China’s Huawei “under assessment”- U.S. official
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Feb 28 (Reuters) - A Trump administration policy that allowed companies to ship some U.S. technology below the “5G level” to China’s blacklisted telecommunications equipment maker Huawei is “under assessment,” a key U.S. official said on Tuesday. “A licensing rule of the previous administration still stands for Huawei that allows things below 5G, below cloud level, to go, and I will say that all those things are under assessment,” U.S. Commerce Department official Alan Estevez, who oversees export control policy, said at a Congressional hearing. Reporting by Karen Freifeld and Alexandra Alper; Editing by Chizu NomiyamaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Feb 28 (Reuters) - The Biden administration approved more than $23 billion worth of licenses for companies to ship U.S. goods and technology to blacklisted Chinese companies in the first quarter of 2022, a Republican lawmaker said on Tuesday. The data comes amid growing pressure on the administration of Democratic President Joe Biden to further expand a broad crackdown on shipments of sensitive U.S. technology to China from Republican lawmakers, who now control the House of Representatives. The data comes a week after the Biden administration added new Chinese companies to the trade blacklist for aiding Russia’s military and months after announcing a sweeping new policy aimed at dramatically curbing shipments of chips and chipmaking tools to China. Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies Co Ltd was added to a trade blacklist known as the entity list by former Republican President Donald Trump in 2019, amid allegations of sanctions violations, spying capabilities, and intellectual property theft. Reporting by Karen Freifeld and Alexandra Alper; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Marguerita Choy and Leslie AdlerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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