22 Sep 17. Pres. Trump Issues Executive Order Imposing New Sanctions with respect to North Korea. President Donald Trump has issued an Executive Order imposing additional sanctions with respect to North Korea. These new authorities target individuals and entities that engage in trade with North Korea as well as the financial institutions that facilitate this trade. Financial Institutions: The E.O. provides the authority to impose sanctions on any foreign financial institution that knowingly conducts or facilitates any significant transaction on behalf of certain designated individuals and entities, or any significant transaction in connection with trade with North Korea, on or after the date of the E.O.
• Under this new authority, the sanctions measures can be either restrictions on correspondent or payable-through accounts or blocking sanctions.
• The E.O. also provides the Secretary of the Treasury additional authority to block any funds originating from, destined for, or passing through accounts linked to North Korea that come within the United States or possession of a U.S. person.
• Foreign financial institutions must choose between doing business with the United States or facilitating trade with North Korea or its designated supporters.
Trade: The E.O. directly targets North Korea’s shipping and trade networks and issues a 180-day ban on vessels and aircraft that have visited North Korea from visiting the United States. This ban also targets vessels that have engaged in a ship-to-ship transfer with a vessel that has visited North Korea within 180 days. North Korea is dependent on its shipping networks to facilitate international trade. The E.O. also authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, to impose sanctions on persons involved in:
• Industries: The construction, energy, financial services, fishing, information technology, manufacturing, medical, mining, textiles, or transportation industries in North Korea;
• Ports: Ownership, control, or operation of any port in North Korea, including any seaport, airport, or land port of entry; and
• Imports/Exports: at least one significant importation from or exportation to North Korea of any goods, services, or technology. (Source: glstrade.com)
20 Sep 17. US Air Force and industry rethink requirements to prep for space war. During a discussion on the future of the military in space, leaders from the U.S. Air Force and industry argued that in the coming years, a rethinking of training, capabilities, and the environment itself, would be necessary to counter threats on the immediate horizon.
Traditionally, the thinking about training in space has been about how you operate satellites in orbit, said Chris Long, vice president of Orbital ATK’s National Security System,. Instead, he said, we need to start thinking about how you fight in space.
Brigadier General Chance Saltzman, director of current operations for the deputy chief of staff for operations of the Air Force, mirrored this sentiment, expressing the calculus in space is, “no longer just about what you buy,” but how you build force packages or concepts of operation (CONOPS) in space.
According to industry leaders, implementing this capability would necessitate “virtual PhDs” capable of monitoring, operating, and fighting, using these platforms.
Implementing these new ways of thinking is largely a matter of resiliency in the space architecture, according to all the panelists. Orbital’s Long and Lars Hoffman, Senior Director of Government Sales at SpaceX, said their respective companies were already considering ways in which to ensure that their products met the newfound needs of warfighters in the environment.
When asked, both Hoffman and Long said their companies placed a priority on ensuring the security of their supply chain in order to meet this contest threat environment. Additionally, Hoffman referenced SpaceX’s Automated Flight Safety System, a program that can