Global Security Newswire

WASHINGTON — Urged by the computer technology industry, the U.S. Commerce Department has proposed to significantly relax national security export controls on the technology to develop and build some of the most powerful computers and advanced microprocessors. The restrictions were originally created to prevent nations of proliferation concern from acquiring advanced computers.

The plan, which currently is in the proposal stage and was announced in today’s Federal Register, would continue an industry-backed trend of easing high-performance computer export restrictions that began in the early years of the Clinton administration and has continued into the Bush administration (see GSN, Jan. 3, 2002). 

It differs from most past changes, though, by easing controls on the technology for developing and producing the computers in such countries, rather than on the actual computers.

Under the regulation change, countries identified in federal regulations as “Tier 3” nations — those of proliferation concern, such as Algeria, China, India, Israel, Pakistan, Russia and Saudi Arabia — would be eligible to import the software and technology for developing and producing higher-performance computers without a Commerce Department security check and license.

The plan calls for giving Tier 3 nations access to technology for developing computers that can process up to 75,000 millions of theoretical operations per second (MTOPS) without the Commerce scrutiny. Current regulations prevent most nations from acquiring U.S. development and production technology for computers that operate over 33,000 MTOPS without a Commerce license.

The regulations would continue to allow Tier 3 countries to import actual computers capable of performing 190,000 MTOPS without Commerce issuing a license following a security check. U.S. President George W. Bush raised it to that level in 2002, from 85,000 MTOPS set by President Bill Clinton.

Prior to 1996, such countries were not allowed to buy U.S. computers with a capability comparable to today’s desktop computers, about 2,000 MTOPS, without first receiving a Commerce review.

The reason for having the restrictions, experts say, is that high-performance computers could be used to, among other things, develop new nuclear weapons and ballistic missile capabilities and conduct advanced encryption and code-breaking that could erode U.S. military’s qualitative advantages.

“We still don’t seem to have learned the real lesson from 9/11 and that’s that we need to make export controls stronger, rather than weaker,” said Gary Milhollin, director of the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control.

“In the past the GAO [General Accounting Office] has found that each time Commerce has relaxed controls on computers it was done to accommodate industry rather than on a rational basis.”

The high-performance computer sector argues the proposed changes are a matter of practicality.

“Industry has requested that BIS [the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security] raise the Composite Theoretical Performance (CTP) eligibility level for computer and microprocessor technology and software to correspond with that for equipment, in order to enable companies to provide access to this technology and software to foreign nationals working in their U.S. and foreign facilities,” the proposed rule says.

Industry has advocated eliminating the MTOPS restrictions altogether.

“The first step towards establishment of a more modern, effective system must be for Congress to remove the “MTOPS handcuffs,” says the industry-backed Computer Coalition for Responsible Exports in “talking points” posted on its Web site.

The proposed rule is intended “to solicit public comments to assist [the BIS] in evaluating the effect of the proposed amendments,” said the proposed rule’s text.

Changes for Other CountriesThe proposal also would ease similar restrictions for dozens of “Tier 1” countries that the United States does not consider to pose a proliferation threat, such as Argentina, Botswana, Congo, Iceland, South Korea, Peru and Zimbabwe.

Those countries would be able to obtain U.S. software and production technology without prior Commerce scrutiny for computers up to 150,000 MTOPS.

Under the previous Bush change, such countries already can import U.S. computers of any speed.

For a select group of major developed countries in Tier 1, including the United Kingdom, France, Japan and South Korea, all licensing requirements could be waived.

The high-performance computer sector has argued the MTOPS restrictions do not prevent the advancement of computer technology worldwide because countries can simply link up lesser computers together to make more powerful computers.

The proposed rule also asks industry to suggest alternatives for a different parameter other than MTOPS for restricting sensitive computer exports.