Export Control Compliance News

ACADEMIC EXPORT CONTROLS ENFORCEMENT CASE: 5 THINGS UNIVERSITIES CAN LEARN

Dr. Jennifer Saak ǀ Traliance ǀ March 9, 2021

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) under the U.S. Department of Commerce recently announced an administrative settlement of $54,000 with Princeton University for potential export violations that the university self-disclosed. What can the research compliance and academic community learn from this case? The root of the export controls enforcement case is that Princeton University did not have the required BIS export licenses before shipping various strains and recombinants of animal pathogens to various international destinations. These items were classified under export control classification numbers ECCNs 1C351, 1C352, and 1C353 on the Commerce Control List (CCL). Biological materials are on everyone’s mind as international research collaborations continue with the mission of developing new COVID-19 vaccines to fight the pandemic. So the news of this enforcement case is indeed timely.

SENATE APPROVES BILL TO TIGHTEN CONTROLS ON CHINA-FUNDED CONFUCIUS INSTITUTES ON U.S. UNIVERSITY CAMPUSES

Christian Nunley ǀ CNBC ǀ March 6, 2021

The Senate on Thursday approved by unanimous consent — without a roll-call vote — a bill that would increase oversight on Confucius Institutes, China-funded cultural centers that operate on university campuses. According to Human Rights Watch, Confucius Institutes “are Chinese government-funded outposts that offer Chinese language and culture classes.” However, some politicians, particularly Republicans, have accused them of spreading propaganda. “Confucius Institutes are under the control of the Chinese Communist Party in all but name,” said Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., who introduced the bill. “This bill would give colleges and universities full control over their resident Confucius Institutes and restore freedom of thought on their campuses.” In 2020, Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., introduced a similar bill. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., one of that bill’s co-sponsors, said, “For far too long, the Communist Chinese government has attempted to infiltrate American universities through the disguise of the government-run Confucius Institute.”

DESANTIS & FLORIDA LAWMAKERS TAKE AIM AT CHINA

Jake Stofan ǀ News 4 Jax ǀ March 1, 2021

Gov. Ron DeSantis and state lawmakers are adding China to the growing list of targets for the 2021 Florida legislative session, which gets underway on Tuesday. Newly filed bills include measures that aim to limit intellectual property theft by the communist regime and crack down on Chinese influence at American colleges and universities. “The growing presence of the Chinese communist party influence in domestic and international affairs is one of the most pervasive threats to American security and prosperity,” DeSantis said during a Monday news conference. The governor and House Speaker Chris Sprowls are backing two proposals. The first seeks to curb Chinese influence in the academic field by requiring transparency for donations from foreign governments over $50,000 and punishing institutions that don’t comply. “Florida is known for our sunshine and transparency,” Sprowls said. “No longer will foreign interests be able to hide payments through subsidiaries and front companies.”

EXCLUSIVE: HACKERS BREAK INTO ‘BIOCHEMICAL SYSTEMS’ AT OXFORD UNIVERSITY LAB STUDYING COVID-19

Thomas Brewster ǀ Forbes ǀ February 25, 2021

One of the world’s top biology labs—one whose renowned professors have been researching how to counter the Covid-19 pandemic—has been hacked. Oxford University confirmed on Thursday it had detected and isolated an incident at the Division of Structural Biology (known as “Strubi”) after Forbes disclosed that hackers were showing off access to a number of systems. These included machines used to prepare biochemical samples, though the university said it couldn’t comment further on the scale of the breach. It has contacted the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC), a branch of the British intelligence agency GCHQ, which will now investigate the attack. “We have identified and contained the problem and are now investigating further,” an Oxford University spokesperson said. “There has been no impact on any clinical research, as this is not conducted in the affected area. As is standard with such incidents, we have notified the National Cyber Security Center and are working with them.”

KLOBUCHAR, REED, PETERS URGE NATIONAL SECURITY OFFICIALS TO TAKE STEPS TO COUNTER FOREIGN INFLUENCE CAMPAIGNS

Amy Klobuchar, United States Senator ǀ February 25, 2021

U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Chairwoman of the Senate Rules Committee with oversight over federal elections, with Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), Chairman of the Committee on Armed Services, and Senator Gary Peters (D-MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, urged national security officials to take steps to counter foreign influence campaigns. In the letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, the senators highlighted warnings of ongoing malign influence campaigns from Russia, China, and Iran, and other foreign adversaries seeking to undermine the U.S. and our allies from U.S. intelligence officials and independent researchers. The senators urged the implementation of three congressionally authorized initiatives designed to counter foreign malign influence campaigns that were not implemented by the Trump administration: the establishment of the Foreign Malign Influence Response Center at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence; the establishment of a social media threat and analysis center (in the form of an Information Sharing and Analysis Center (ISAC); and the creation of a Foreign Malign Influence Coordinator position on the White House National Security Council staff.

FEDERAL CHARGES AGAINST STANFORD UNIVERSITY RESEARCHER EXPANDED

U.S. Department of Justice ǀ February 19, 2021

A federal grand jury issued a superseding indictment charging Chen Song with visa fraud, obstruction of justice, destruction of documents, and false statements in connection with a scheme to conceal and lie about her status as a member of the People’s Republic of China’s military forces while in the United States, the Justice Department announced yesterday. “We allege that while Chen Song worked as a researcher at Stanford University, she was secretly a member of China’s military, the People’s Liberation Army,” said U.S. Attorney David L. Anderson for the Northern District of California. “When Song feared discovery, she destroyed documents in a failed attempt to conceal her true identity. This prosecution will help to protect elite institutions like Stanford from illicit foreign influences.” "Members of the Chinese People's Liberation Army cannot lie on their visa applications and come to the United States to study without expecting the FBI and our partners to catch them." said Assistant Director Alan E. Kohler Jr. of the FBI's Counterintelligence Division.

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