On July 15, 2020, the US Department of State (“State Department”) updated its guidance (“Updated Guidance”) regarding the implementation of Section 232 of Title II of the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (“CAATSA” see our previous blog post on CAATSA here and our previous blog post on the 2017 State Department guidance on CAATSA Section 232 here). The Updated Guidance expands the scope of CAATSA Section 232 to target certain investments or other activities related to the…
On May 29, 2020, the president announced in a White House press conference the Administration’s determination that Hong Kong is no longer sufficiently autonomous from the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”), and that the US Government would take “strong and meaningful” steps to “begin the process” of reviewing and revoking the “full range of agreements” that currently provide Hong Kong with preferential treatment under US law. This determination follows Secretary of State Michael Pompeo’s certification…
As of May 1, the State Department has made a temporary change in the Tier I, Tier II, and new registrant payment guidelines on the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (“DDTC”) website to reflect certain reduced registration fees to mitigate the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The DDTC is reducing fees for Tier I and Tier II registrants to $500 (reduced from $2,250 and $2,750, respectively) for registrations whose original expiration date is between…
On April 15, 2020, the US Departments of State, Homeland Security, and the Treasury (“Treasury”), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation issued an advisory warning about the cyber threat posed by North Korea, calling particular attention to banks and other financial institutions (“Advisory”). The Advisory (i) highlights North Korea’s malicious cyber activities across the globe, (ii) identifies and recommends measures to counter the cyber threat, including cybersecurity best practices, and (iii) summarizes potential enforcement actions…