Bessent blames commerce department for Megaspeed export control gaps
The treasury, Pentagon, state department and US trade representative’s office had long supported blacklisting Megaspeed, but the final decision rested with the commerce department.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent blamed the Commerce Department for gaps in export controls related to Megaspeed, a Singapore company tied to Nvidia's export scandal. While four other government agencies recommended adding Megaspeed to a trade black list, Bessent noted the Commerce Department held the authority to make the final decision.
The Commerce Department's entity list serves as a trade blacklist for entities posing potential national security risks to the US. Bessent declined to comment on the Commerce Department's response to the request for clarification. Republican and Democratic senators have expressed concerns over Commerce Secretary Wilbur Lutnick's handling of export controls.
Lutnick reportedly delayed President Donald Trump's crackdown on companies suspected of diverting Nvidia's chips to China. Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal called for Lutnick's resignation, citing his alleged corruption and prioritization of personal profit over public interest. Bessent emphasized the administration's efforts to close export system leaks and questioned Nvidia's vetting process of Megaspeed, particularly in light of CEO Jensen Huang's exit from the company.
Lawmakers are pushing for stricter restrictions on China's access to advanced AI chips following the scandal, which has implicated several Trump administration officials, including Lutnick, in the export control oversight controversy.
Written by urgent.news from Free Malaysia Today's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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