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U.S. Needs to Improve Certain Export Control Measures, GAO Says By Mike Nartker WASHINGTON — The U.S. Commerce Department needs to improve its procedures for ensuring that dual-use exports are being properly used, congressional auditors said in a report released yesterday (see GSN, Oct. 21, 2003). Dual-use exports are items that can be used in civilian and conventional military applications, as well as to develop weapons of mass destruction. From fiscal 2000 to fiscal 2002, the department approved more than 26,000 export licenses for dual-use items, with almost 30 percent of those licenses involving exports to countries of proliferation concern to the United States, such as China and India, according to the U.S. General Accounting Office report. To ensure that dual-use exports are being properly used and not diverted to other purposes, the Commerce Department sends personnel to foreign companies to conduct a post-shipment verification (PSV) check to verify the use and location of the item. The GAO found, however, that only a small number of dual-use export licenses were subject to PSV inspections, according to the report. It says that from fiscal 2000 to fiscal 2002, PSVs were conducted on only 6 percent of 7680 dual-use licenses approved for companies in countries of concern. Concerns about the possible misuse of dual-use exports have risen as more details are learned about an international nuclear black market recently outed by the confession of a top Pakistani nuclear scientist. For example, recent reports have described a shipment of centrifuge components from a Malaysian-based company that were ultimately diverted to Libya for suspected use in Tripoli’s nuclear program. In its report, the GAO criticized the department’s procedures for having several flaws that reduced the effectiveness of the PSV checks. The report says that 36 percent of companies in countries of concern reported that U.S. officials did not ask them about compliance with export license conditions during PSV inspections. In addition, 75 percent of the officials that conducted PSV checks between 2000 to 2002 reported they lacked technical training in a number of technologies that accounted for almost 90 percent of the checks conducted, the report says. The report also notes that some countries of concern, “most notably China,” limit access to facilities where dual-use items are shipped, hindering PSV inspections. Last fall, Undersecretary of Commerce for Industry and Security Kenneth Juster highlighted U.S. concerns over China’s reluctance to fully cooperate with on-site inspections during a speech before the Update 2003 Export Controls and Policy Conference in Washington. “Although we have made some progress with the Chinese in this area, much more needs to be done in order to have an effective system in place. Without further progress, our ability to license exports to certain Chinese companies will decrease,” Juster said. In its report, the GAO made several recommendations to improve the PSV inspection process, including improved technical training for department personnel conducting the checks and ensuring that they assess compliance with license conditions. The report says the department “generally agreed” with the recommendation and that the department has already begun to implement similar measures.
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