Rethinking Export Controls in a New Era

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"Export controls can be a formidable tool to protect technological advantage and to deter illiberal and dangerous use of technologies," says Martijn Rasser.  Used properly for their intended purpose—to affect the military potential of a foreign country, to advance major foreign policy objectives, or to fulfill international obligations—export controls can bolster U.S. national security.(1)

(1.) U.S. House of Representatives, Export Control Reform Act of 2018, H.R. 5040, 115th Congress, https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/5040/text. 

Rasser says to revamp export controls for this new era—a global strategic competition with technology at its core—U.S. policymakers should focus on three tenets for implementation.

1. Work with allies.
2. Raise the threshold.
3. Reframe the goal.

Read the entire (and very thorough) commentary:  Rethinking Export Controls:  Unintended Consequences and the New Technological Landscape.