This is to comply with the ever changing export restrictions enacted by the current US administration. So don’t expect it to change soon.
How do export restrictions prevent Framework from shipping to i.e Japan?
When you’re a company who needs time to adapt to any change in policy (aka all of them) and a company that can’t afford fines for noncompliance (small companies like Framework) your strategy is to be as conservative as possible.
We have a very strict radio law that applies to anything that can produce radio or em waves
That includes motherboards, since they can technically emit on those frequencies.
From what I have seen, the framework laptop motherboards appear to abide by that law. However, I assume it's just expensive to figure out in the first place.