On November 30, 2021, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) issued a Notice of Inquiry in the Federal Register seeking public comments regarding areas and priorities for United States and European Union (EU) export control cooperation. This information gathering is intended to inform and assist the work of the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC) Export Control Working Group. The TTC was established during the U.S.-EU summit in June 2021 (see Update of June 17, 2021) and held its first meeting on September 29, 2021 (see Update of September 30, 2021).

Under the TTC’s Export Control Working Group, the United States and the EU will seek to enhance cooperation in the following areas:

  • Technical consultations on current and upcoming legislative and regulatory developments;
  • Technical consultations on compliance and enforcement approaches;
  • Capacity building assistance to third countries; and
  • Technical consultations regarding multilateral and international cooperation.

Comments should address ways in which existing U.S. and/or EU dual-use export control policies and practices may be “more transparent, more efficient and effective, more convergent, and fit for today’s challenges, in particular with regards to the control of emerging technologies.” The notes highlight that comments “providing specific and concrete examples where further convergence in U.S. and EU export control practices and policies could enhance international security and the protection of human rights, and support a global level-playing field and joint technology development and innovation, would be particularly helpful.”

Comments must be submitted no later than January 14, 2022, using the federal rulemaking portal (www.regulations.gov). The docket number for this request for comments is BIS-2021-0044.