Facing a shortage of food, Russia turns to Asian countries for supplies, including a NATO member.

After years of denial, the Russian leader publicly admitted in early November that the sanctions imposed by the West has indeed brought in “some sort of inconveniences” and food prices have been soaring as a result of this policy.

Vladimir Putin referred to the shortage of butter in Russia’s retail chain, which angered people across the country. As a result, the agricultural and food watchdogs Rosselkhoznadzor and Rosspotrebnadzor have authorized the import of butter from the United Arab Emirates and Türkiye, the latter being a NATO country.

Yet, a customer shopping in a Moscow supermarket shared a video showing a block of butter wrapped in package with Russian and Arabic texts, in which she discovered that the butter in her hand was actually produced in Ukraine.

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On a closer look, it turns that this butter produced at the Rozhychensky Cheese-Making Plant in Bar, a city in the Vinnytsia Region of Ukraine. The plant is part of the dairy industry in the region, which is well-known for its agricultural activities, including dairy production.

The Vinnytsia Region, though far from the front line, in Ukraine’s west, has also been bombed by Russian forces since the all-out invasion in February 2022.

Most likely is that the UAE had previously imported butter from Ukraine and now sold it to Russia. The validity dates – 18 June 2024 to 17 June 2025 – means that it is still fresh under commercial standards.

The UAE has already delivered 90 metric tons of butter, while imports from Turkey commenced in October. This shift in sourcing is part of Russia's broader strategy to secure adequate butter supplies and curb price inflation, according to Reuters.

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On the other hand, butter imports from Latin America have significantly decreased, from 25,000 tons in 2014 to just 2,800 tons this year. Rosselkhoznadzor attributes this decline to Western sanctions, logistical challenges, and lack of business agreements.

Belarus remains Russia’s largest butter supplier, increasing its exports by 9% this year to reach 110,000 tons. It’s unclear when Russia itself will start producing its own butter in sufficient volumes following Putin’s bragging on numerous occasions that his country is capable of substituting all imports from the Western world. This is exactly what the woman asks rhetorically while examining the "UAE-made" butter.

Hey, Putin, perhaps it’s a good idea to stop bombing Ukrainian food industries – you never know when butter runs out of stock – as well as residential buildings, because someone must work to feed your hungry country fellows.

Here's the video on YouTube:

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