This blog has noted before that comprehensive embargoes by the United States that cover civil aircraft parts flaunt the Convention on International Civil Aviation to which the United States is a party inasmuch as they endanger the lives of people in the air and on the ground in countries not subject to the embargo.  The new Cuba rules proposed by the Bureau of Industry and Security (found here) and by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (found here) begin to correct this problem, at least as far as the Cuba embargo and BIS are concerned.

Articles 4 and 44 of the Convention make clear that member states are not to compromise the safety of civil aviation  as an instrument of national policy against other countries or to take actions in pursuing national goals that would endanger civil aviation in other member states. Use of an embargo to withhold essential parts for civilian aircraft clearly conflicts with these principles and with the United States’ obligation under the Convention.

The proposed amendments forthrightly admit that the U.S. embargo endangers civil aviation by now adding section 746.2(b)(6) which, as now amended, states:

License applications for exports or re-exports of items to ensure safety in civil aviation, including the safe operation of commercial passenger aircraft will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Not only does this admit that the embargo had a deleterious effect on flight safety, but it leaves open the possibility that the U.S. could continue to endanger flight safety on a “case-by-case basis.” One has to wonder why there would ever be a question with respect to “items to ensure safety in civil aviation.”

Of course, OFAC is up to its neck as well in this problem, because it also regulates exports and re-exports to Cuba. The general license in section 515.533^* for exports of items licensed by BIS only covers items exported from the United States or items re-exported from the United States with 100% U.S. content. In the case of items with less than 100% U.S. content re-exported from outside the U.S., an OFAC license will be required (which will be in addition to a BIS license if the item is subject to the EAR, i.e., has 25% or more U.S. content.)

The new OFAC rules, however, do not contain an explicit statement of the licensing policy for Cuba. And unlike the case with Iran, where OFAC published a licensing policy for exports “to ensure the safe operation of Iranian commercial passenger aircraft,” there is no such published policy with respect to Cuban commercial passenger aircraft, although OFAC may informally be applying that policy. So, at least with respect to re-exports of goods with less than 100% U.S. content, OFAC appears to be free to continue to violate the Convention to the detriment of international civil aviation, although whether it will do so remains to be seen.

^*Because the Internet is hard, OFAC has, apparently by mistake, removed the complete text of the Cuba regulations from its site and now links instead only the text of the public notice announcing the new amendments.

Here are a few recent developments that you may have missed:

• Adam Szubin, former OFAC head, threatens to re-impose sanctions on Iranian banks in confirmation hearings on his nomination as Treasury Department Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence.
• DC  tabloid Washington Examiner suggests that BIS is about to realize more rules lifting parts of the Cuba embargo; quotes DC attorney and embargo cheerleader who predicts end of the world as we know it if that happens. UPDATE: New BIS regulations are here and new OFAC regulations are here. They will be effective when published on Monday (9/21/2015). World to end on following day.
• Sony’s deal to distribute Cuban music is premised, naturally, on the informational materials exception, and has been in the works for two years with OFAC granting travel licenses for Sony executives to go to Cuba to negotiate the deal.
• Foreign Policy magazine’s blog is all worked up about military applications of mind-reading machines and possible proliferation of this “dual use” technology. Next week, the folks at Foreign Policy blog are going to urge that warp speed space ships be added to the USML.

An article in today’s Washington Post may be attracting some attention over in the halls and cubicles of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”).  It describes in some detail how Miles Jackson, a local DC man and skateboarding enthusiast, appears to have been skating around the U.S. embargo on Cuba to deliver skateboards to Cuba and to spend time with his skateboarding buds in Havana.

Apparently the skateboarder became interested in Cuban skateboarding while studying abroad in Cuba during college.  So far, so good; nothing wrong with that.

The dicey stuff starts after he returns to the United States and wants to keep up with his skateboarding buddies in Cuba and send them real skateboards, notwithstanding the travel and export bans for Cuba.

Jackson and [a friend] Bradley began traveling to Cuba that September to drop a few boards off. Because direct travel from the United States was limited, their first trips went through Toronto, Bradley said.

That sentence probably should be re-written to remove the word “limited” — “Because direct travel from the United States was illegal, their first trips went through Toronto.” Of course, direct travel would be legal with a license, but then you wouldn’t go through Canada. Of course, maybe Jackson did get an OFAC license to go skateboarding in Cuba and decided to take the long route through Toronto.

On top of that, Jackson started exporting skateboards to Cuba:

Jackson … regularly travels with up to 50 skateboards at a time. He and his friends, through their nonprofit organization Cuba Skate, have ferried more than 200 skateboards in the past five years to aspiring skaters in the island country.

Of course, that would be okay if licensed, but there is no indication that such licenses were obtained. Another possibility would be export pursuant to BIS License Exception GFT. But that covers parcels addressed to an individual containing quantities normally given as gifts; it does not cover carrying 50 skateboards to Cuba through Canada if that is what happened.

Now Jackson wants to fix up the skateboard parks in Havana. He and some friends

plan to travel again to Havana in September, when they hope to start an ambitious renovation of the country’s only official skatepark, El Patinodromo, on the outskirts of the city. During the rainy season, the park floods, and the metal ramps and rails have begun to rust.

With the embargoes relaxed, Jackson hopes to replace the aging ramps and rails over five to eight weeks, pending permission from the State Department.

The State Department? Really?? Apparently the editors at the Washington Post (like their colleagues at the Wall Street Journal) must also be on vacation.