(AmericanProsperity.com) – According to a Newsweek June 21 report, the Kremlin is capitalizing on export controls’ loopholes to purchase Western technology and use it in its war against Ukraine. More than 60 percent of these critical components Russia is buying for its military equipment come from American companies, and most of this material passes through China.
The report confirms claims from different world leaders who have said that the scope of the tech material that still reaches Russia is larger than acknowledged by Western governments. It also validates allegations from political analysts who have said that the sanctions imposed against the Kremlin won’t stop it from buying military components.
Newsweek had exclusive access to a KSE Institute analysis that showed how Moscow imported $20.3 billion in military components from March 2022 to December 2022. This figure represents a small 15 percent drop from the year before Russia invaded Ukraine.
Overall, the Kremlin bought technology manufactured by 155 different companies headquartered in different countries across the world. However, the director of Kyiv School of Economics’ International Affairs Programs Elina Ribakova said that Russian troops are mostly using Western components.
According to Russian trade data, the Kremlin imported 72 percent of the total value of the military components from Beijing. Nevertheless, the data revealed that nearly 85 percent of this technology was originally produced in Europe and the United States. These imports represent a significant increase from 22 percent during the period March-December in 2021.
About this issue, political analyst Emily Kilcrease told Newsweek that Washington and its Western allies need to increase their efforts to guarantee that the export controls are efficient. She explained that Russia is showing significant adaptability, as she explained that these controls and economic sanctions should have achieved the desired results by now. Kilcrease added that the Western world has already taken the “big swing” against the Kremlin, and now they need to enforce it.
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