The Bloomberg news agency points out that Russia is still evading sanctions against Moscow and that in 2023 the country has procured almost a billion dollars worth of Western-made chips. High-tech electronic components produced in the West are also used by the Russian military industry.
Data from the Russian customs service available to Bloomberg shows that more than half of the chips imported in the first nine months of 2023 were made by US and European companies. These companies included Intel, AMD, Infineon Technologies, STMicroelectronics, and NXP Semiconductors.
All companies said they would comply with sanctions against Moscow. The companies confirmed that they stopped their business activities in Russia when the war broke out. They also work with Western authorities to prevent their products from reaching Russia.
However, companies don’t always need to track where their products go after they’re sold. For some high-tech chips, however, the entire supply chain must be registered, i.e. from the manufacturer to the end customer.
Although Russia is primarily looking to acquire chips produced in the West, Moscow has recently also turned its eye to the Chinese market. In total, Russia imported $1.7 billion worth of chips. Such advanced technology is also used by the Russian military industry.
According to the Ukrainian School of Economics, foreign components are still present in Russian weapons. Russia also uses such weapons to attack Ukrainian cities.
Russia buys most of its advanced technology through third countries, including China, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. The United States and the European Union (EU) are now trying to tighten sanctions against Moscow. The EU is already working on a new sanctions package.
However, as early as 2022, experts warned that Russia could evade sanctions against Moscow if it acquired chips.
2024-01-25 16:47:00
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