Archive for the ‘Germany’ Category

Study Points at ITAR as Hurting US Defense Industry’s Competitiveness

Thursday, October 15th, 2009 by Danielle McClellan

A recent study was published in the book “Fortresses & Icebergs: The Evolution of the Transatlantic Defense Market and the Implications for U.S. National Security Policy” outlining the decline of US defense firms market position in Europe. The study was funded by the Department of Defense and Johns Hopkins in order to get a feel for the transatlantic defense market. The US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Romania and Sweden were all examined for market obstacles and restrictions, especially the ITAR in the US.

The book, written by Bialos, Christine Fisher and Stuart Koehl dives into the current state of the defense market and takes the reader through the present and future of the international industry and explains what the US needs to do to keep from drowning. “Fortresses & Icebergs” describes the negative trend that US firms are facing in Europe, increased cooperative buying among European nations and an ITAR backlash are turning the market upside down. In the past European nations bought nearly all of their defense article from the US but the recent study shows that more and more international companies are purchasing their defense articles outside the US. The study also confirmed that the number US firms buying from European firms is growing. This may be because of the Obama Administrations’ need to procure defense articles based on affordability and competition with the dwindling defense budget, a very positive sign for European companies wanting to compete in the US market. (more…)

Posted in DDTC, France, Germany, ITAR, UK | Comments Off

Luxembourg-based Company and Affiliates Pay $25 Million Fine to US Government

Monday, February 2nd, 2009 by Danielle McClellan

By: Danielle McClellan, Maarten Sengers and John Black

Qioptiq S.a.r.l (Qioptiq), the owner of a night vision equipment producer in Singapore and related affiliates in the UK and the US, recently agreed to pay $25 million in fines for US International Traffic in Arms (ITAR) violations. The bulk of the 163 charges relate to Qioptiq Singapore activities, including disclosure of unlicensed US night vision technology to its own employees in Singapore, the export of ITAR jurisdiction technology to a variety of countries, and the manufacture and unlicensed export of night vision assemblies using US origin ITAR data to a variety of countries. The large fine is due to the fact that the majority of the violations involved illegal transfers to China (or Chinese national employees) and Iran, two countries that are subject to particularly restrictive ITAR proscribed country status.

SPECIAL NOTE:The Export Compliance Training Institute will discuss the case in detail and look at practical steps companies may take to avoid such fines at its upcoming seminars on US export and reexport controls in Singapore on March 1-4, 2009. Details available at: http://learnexportcompliance.com/seminars/ecti-2010-singapore-seminar.pdf

Qioptiq obtained several Thales High Technology Optic Group companies, including Thales Electro-Optics Pte Limited, Singapore (Thales Singapore), Avimo Singapore (predecessor to Thales Singapore), Thales Optical Coatings, Limited, UK and Thales Optem, Inc., NY (Thales NY) in December 2005. (For the purpose of this article we often will refer to the collective group of companies in Singapore as Qioptiq unless otherwise specified, and not make the distinction between whether violations occurred when the entity was Thales or Qioptiq.) The companies’ primary business is the manufacturing of optical components used in both commercial and military applications. Before the purchase, Thales voluntarily disclosed some of the ITAR violations to the US Government and agreed that its successor company Qioptiq would conduct a thorough review of ITAR compliance over the preceding five years, (and further in some situations). Because of the Thales agreement with the US Government Qioptiq inherited many of the violations when it acquired the Thales companies. (more…)

Posted in BIS, Denied & Restricted Parties, Dual/3rd Party Nationals, Export License, Germany, Singapore, USA Regulations, Violations & Fines | Comments Off

German Company Pays $50,000 US Fine for Sales to Cuba

Friday, January 2nd, 2009 by Danielle McClellan

Gunnar Petzel Medizintechnik of Germany has been issued a civil penalty of $50,000 for three violations of the EAR. The company ordered and purchased Ten Station Microplate Processing Conveyor Systems and supply units for export from the US to Cuba via Germany. The purchases were made between November 2003 and June 2006. Both items are designated EAR 99 but because Cuba was the final destination a license from the Department of Commerce was required due to the strict sanction on the country. Gunnar Petzel Medizintechnik never obtained any authorizations for the exports.

More information:

Charging letter (PDF)

Posted in Cuba, EAR, Germany, Violations & Fines | Comments Off