Moscow is getting better at evading Western sanctions.

The multiple packages of Western sanctions on Russia – the latest one, 11the, being approved by the European Union just recently, on 21 June 2022 – have not deterred the lucrative collaboration between Moscow’s military contractors and dozens of EU-based companies.

A new investigation claims that at least 25 European companies continued selling military stuff such as microchips for missiles, detonators, cartridge cases, body armor, military footwear, and engines for warships to not-yet-sanctioned recipients in Russia after the February 2022 invasion in Ukraine. 

These and other military-related goods are imported from Germany, France, Switzerland, Hungary, Slovakia, Italy, Estonia, Lithuania, Austria, and Poland. Most of those countries support Ukraine and have joined the sanctions on the Russian Federation.

German, Italian, French among largest suppliers

Vansped Logistics GmbH (Germany) shipped foundry technology from Reißaus & Baumberg Maschinenbau GmbH (Germany) to Stan OOO (Russia), a manufacturer of computer-controlled machine tools in July 2022.

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Stan is part of the Moscow-based defense industry and supplies tools and spare parts for fighter jets and bombers via the Defense Ministry’s Aviation Repair Plant 123; for missiles made by the Rocket Tactical Warfare corporation (Тактическое ракетное вооружение); for anti-ship missiles made by Strela company; missile aircraft engines made by ODK Kuznetsov; tanks by Uralvagonzavod; nuclear and diesel submarines (NIKIET, Admiraltejskye Verfi); for torpedo and sea mines (Gidropribor), and others, statistical data show.

These enterprises produce weapons and ammunition that is now used in Ukraine.

Donobuv, a supplier of boots for the Defense Ministry, openly admits on its website that it gets the materials from the European business partners: show glue and leather come from Jakob KECK Chemie GmbH and Salamander SPS GmbH & Co.

KG (both Germany), and the soles come from Tacchifico Campliglionese (Italy).

Shipping from these companies continued after February 2022.

Faradey AO, another contractor for the Russian army, imports components for footwear from the same Salamander, and from Italian firms Suolificio Morrovallese, Formificio Milanese Team, Hawai Italia, Sammi Export, Conceria Cervinia, Cunial Components, as well as Jakob KECK Chemie GmbH.

Faradey also works with Slovak companies Export-Import and Moneta SK.

Minelli Carmello of Italy supplies milling cutters to AO Klass, a manufacturer of body armor for Russian law enforcement and military.

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Radial SA of France exports switches that are used in microchips for missile control systems and for Russia’s GPS systems GLONASS navigation system Gonetz-M, which are used in turn to guide high precision weapons and unmanned aircraft. The recipient is the ISS (АО Информационные спутниковые системы), the largest contractor for the Defense Ministry and Roskosmos, the domestic space agency.

Helping Russians manufacture weapons

Another French company, Marchante, has sold various mechanisms to Russia’s weapons manufacturer Kurganpribor during the war. The latter is the official partner of the Kalashnikov Concern, a major manufacture of firearms and rocket launchers under the control of Russian senator Sergey Muratov.

Kurganpribor manufactures detonators for tank shells, land and naval artillery, multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS), and anti-aircraft missile complexes. In particular, this enterprise supplies detonators and mechanisms for rocket projectiles used by Smerch and Grad MLRS, which are often used in strikes against civilian targets in Ukraine.

Both Kurganpribor and Muratov are under Western sanctions.

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A manufacturer of optical systems for the Russian armed forces, Lomo AO, makes night vision scopes Maugli for mobile missile launchpads and semi-active navigation heads for deadly high-precision shells Krasnopol. Lomo receives fiber optic cables, industrial adhesives and other materials from Marker Nordic Ou in Estonia.

The Swiss firm E-tec Interconnect AG sold electronic equipment for production of neural network accelerators at Modul AO, also a Russian military contractor. Modul AO is owned by the family of Yuri Borisov, a former deputy premier who now leads Roskosmos.

Hungary’s Aluminiumarugyar Zrt. Sells gas canisters to Rusbal, a manufacture of inflatable tanks and infantry vehicles.

Switzerland’s Sipavag AG, Latvia’s D.Kudarauskienes Warehouse and Austria’s Geislinger GmbH supply components to the Kolomenskyi Zavod AO, which manufactures D-500 diesel engines for navy ships.

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The same enterprise also imports coil springs from Heinrich Eibach GmbH of Germany, safety valves from Hoerbinger Wien GmbH of Austria, and engine components from Piston Ring Manufacturer Prima of Poland.

Russia getting better at evading sanctions

On 21 June, a US official admitted that Russia was able to reimport certain key categories of electronics at about pre-war levels, directly of via third countries.

Western exports of key microchips and electronics that Russia needs to fuel its war machine are back to pre-invasion levels, as Moscow has ramped up efforts to circumvent sanctions, Jim O’Brien, sanctions coordinator at the U.S. State Department, told the press. 

The problem is that European companies are selling to other countries, which in turn resell the materials to Russia and thus sponsor the war, he specified.