Export Controls Redux

By John Liang / December 3, 2009 at 5:00 AM

The Aerospace Industries Association is lending its member CEOs' clout to the White House's ongoing review of the export control process.

As Inside the Pentagon reported in October:

The U.S. government is beginning a complicated review of export controls guided by three principles, Anthony Aldwell, deputy director of the Defense Technology Security Administration, said last week, adding it will be “a very complex and contentious process.”

“It is not going to be easy,” Aldwell told an audience of several industry executives during an Oct. 3 conference on defense cooperation held in Arlington, VA. Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met recently with Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, he said, noting consultations must also occur with lawmakers or the effort will “go nowhere.” Consultations with the defense industry are also key, he noted.

To that end AIA, in a letter sent this week to President Obama, "strongly endorses the view that the current system must be updated to address both the national security challenges we face today, as well as the evolving technology and competitive landscape. We have long advocated for a more predictable, efficient and transparent technology control regime that advances our national security interests. An effective export control system must safeguard critical technologies, as well as facilitate collaboration with our closest allies and international partners. The review you have called for holds the potential to generate significant progress toward that end."

According to AIA, the White House could take "early action" on several potential reform initiatives that would not need new laws, including:

1. Establishment of transparent and specific criteria to identify those militarily critical and sensitive defense and space technologies that must be subject to the most rigorous controls
2. Facilitation of timely technology flows between the U.S. and our closest allies and partners, particularly in support of defense and national security programs important to the U.S. government
3. Adoption of procedures to ensure any required Defense Department reviews associated with a proposed release of U.S. technology properly balance both policy and technical considerations, and are completed in a timely and consistent manner
4. Update of the treatment of the next-generation of aerospace and defense technologies, such as Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), under U.S. and multilateral export control regimes
5. Review of export control compliance requirements to improve comprehension and implementation, particularly among small and medium-sized firms, as well as a review of resource requirements to raise confidence in the effectiveness of U.S. enforcement efforts.

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