AUKUS Effort Needs Strong Export Controls Around Tech Information, State Dept. Official Says

The U.S. is hoping to use export controls to better place restrictions around transfers of sensitive technology information, said Bonnie Jenkins, the State Department’s undersecretary for arms control and international security. Jenkins, who is leading the agency’s effort to implement the AUKUS trilateral security partnership between Australia, the U.S. and the U.K., said the three countries need to be diligent about stopping “information getting out.”

Jenkins recently said she’s “very confident” Australia and the U.K. will qualify to receive International Traffic in Arms Regulations exemptions from the U.S. (see 2402150046), part of an effort under AUKUS to reduce defense trade restrictions between the three allies (see 2305240061). But Jenkins, speaking to reporters March 4, also underscored the importance of placing high guardrails around the sensitive technologies and data the three countries could soon begin exporting more easily.

“One of the things we’re focusing on in terms of export controls is information technology and military training,” Jenkins said. “These are the reasons why we have these export controls, is to make sure that we can protect that information.” She added that AUKUS “is a generational effort, but export controls will continually be looked at throughout the process.”

The U.S. and its allies plan to “continue to look at export controls and develop them and adjust them as we need to, based on how technologies are being developed and what could become more vulnerable to countries.” She said that’s “very important to all three countries.”

The Biden administration last year began drafting a list of technologies that will be covered by a defense trade authorization for the AUKUS countries, which will be used to expedite certain defense technology transfers (see 2307100062). Jenkins said the U.S. is viewing the effort as a “modernization” of the ITAR, a set of rules that have long faced criticism from researchers, industry and lawmakers for unnecessarily preventing technology sharing with close U.S. allies (see 2303130035, 2302170022, 2303170045 and 2303140018).

Jenkins said the U.S. is hoping to reach a place where “all three countries will have license-free ability to work together on issues and technologies and information and military training related to AUKUS.”

She added that the State Department is hoping to work closer with industry as it creates the license carve-out. “We’ve already been reaching out to industry, but as we go forward, we want to do more engagement, not only domestically with our industries but also across our different countries,” Jenkins said.

She said the three countries already have held “a couple of demonstrations,” including one in the U.K. last April focused on unmanned aerial vehicles. The demonstrations are “really an effort to show how the three countries can work together on emerging technologies,” Jenkins said.