Last week the U.S. government issued export controls on Huawei Technologies Ltd and 68 of its affiliated companies. In response, IEEE issued guidance on actions required to comply with these controls. We acted promptly because we wanted to protect our volunteers and members from potential legal risk that could have involved significant penalties. As a non-political, not-for-profit organization registered in New York, IEEE must comply with its legal obligations under the laws of the United States and other jurisdictions. We also engaged the U.S. government to seek clarification on the extent to which these export control restrictions were applicable to IEEE activities.

I am pleased to report that this engagement was successful and we have revised our guidance to remove any restriction on the participation of the employees of these companies as editors or peer reviewers in the IEEE publication process. To reemphasize, all IEEE members can continue to participate in the open and public activities of the IEEE, including our scientific and technical publications.Many members expressed apprehension with respect to IEEE’s initial guidance and its impact on editors and peer reviewers based on their employer affiliation. I understand the concern this raised for many of you and appreciate the feedback that IEEE leaders and I received.As an international organization operating in 160 countries, IEEE supports the free and open exchange of scholarly and academic work and the global advancement of science and technology. IEEE is committed to enabling an environment of international cooperation and the sharing of our members’ wealth of knowledge to drive innovation.We appreciate the patience of our members and volunteers as we worked through a legally complex situation.

If you have any comments, questions, or concerns, please contact me at president@ieee.org.For more information, please visit www.ieee.org.Thank you for supporting IEEE in our mission to advance technology for humanity.

José M. F. Moura

2019 IEEE President and CEO