AIA President and CEO Statement on Newly Released ITAR Exemption Rule for AUKUS Nations

Arlington, Va. (May 1, 2024) - Aerospace Industries Association (AIA) President and CEO Eric Fanning today released a statement following the publication of a draft rule from the Department of State, exempting AUKUS nations from the international Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR):

"These proposed regulations are the U.S. government's most important next step to unleash the full potential of AUKUS," Fanning said. "The future of this partnership hinges on getting this right - and that means making trade and technology transfer easier than it is now.

"As we've said all along, deep and enduring collaboration with industry is a cornerstone of the AUKUS partnership. We appreciate the work the administration put into drafting these proposed regulations, and we look forward to working together to address the excluded technologies list and the territorial restrictions. We also must also address the challenge of integrating non-AUKUS supply chain companies into AUKUS. AUKUS is enabled by a global supply chain, and we must account for that global supply chain for AUKUS to achieve its maximum potential.

"The Aerospace Industries Association will work closely with the Department of State to provide detailed feedback that will help improve the proposed regulations. We share the goal of making the generational change AUKUS envisions a reality - with a system that works not only for U.S. regulators, but also for our AUKUS allies and the defense industry that is foundational to AUKUS' success."

In April, AIA's Dak Hardwick participated in an AUKUS roundtable with the House Foreign Affairs Committee, where he advocated for seamless technology sharing and cross collaboration between the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia.

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