Industry’s bone to pick with the ICTS supply chain order

An interim final rule giving the commerce secretary sweeping powers to block transactions in the ICT space that pose a threat to national security has been in effect since late March, but its origins go back to the Trump administration. Since 2019, companies have been pleading with the Department of Commerce to provide more clarity on what kinds of transactions and business partners Commerce will be looking at in the hopes that they can de-risk their business activities before it’s too late. To learn how the rule came about and why industry has been so reluctant to accept it, we’re chatting with Antonio Douglas, a business advisory services manager at the US-China Business Council.