Center for a New American Security Publishes Kevin Wolf Article on Best Use of Export Controls

Akin Gump international trade partner Kevin Wolf has written the article “Export Controls Will Become More Effective When They Include Plurilateral Controls,” part of a new project on export controls by the Center for a New American Security. In the article, Wolf argues that the use of export controls to accomplish only economic or trade policy objectives compromises the effectiveness of both the export control and the international trade systems.

Wolf writes that unilateral controls are effective “if the controlled item provides an inherent or not widely available military or intelligence advantage.” Otherwise, he says, those same unilateral controls are ineffective “because they create incentives to invest in the development and production of the items in other countries,” which he says does not restrict their ultimate transfer to countries of concern and also harms the industrial base of the country imposing the control.

To read more of Wolf’s article and his rationale for supporting plurilateral controls, please click here.