Russia imports thousands of components for its fighter jets from 22 countries despite sanctions

Despite the sanctions, Russia continues to purchase nearly 2,000 components for its fighters, which are produced by 200 companies in 22 nations.

Source: Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence report, as reported by Ekonomichna Pravda

Details: The Independent Anti-Corruption Commission (NAKO) analysed almost 2,000 components used in Russian air force aircraft, including MіG-31I, Su-27SM3, Su-30SM, Su-34, Su-35S, and Su-57.

In 2023, the Russian Federation spent at least US$4 billion on electronics for different military uses, particularly fighter upkeep and production.

According to the research, the majority of parts are still sourced from Western countries by at least 244 companies from 22 different countries. The United States leads this list, accounting for 64% of imported components. Other producing countries include Japan, Switzerland, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Taiwan, and the Netherlands.

At the same time, Russia sources components for these fighters from only 13 Chinese businesses. In a comment to Skhemy, an investigative reporting project by Radio Liberty, aviation expert Bohdan Dolintse explains that in 2024, Russian manufacturers may face a shortage of Western components and will actively seek ways to obtain them, because replacing them with Chinese or Russian analogues in accordance with all aircraft construction rules results in the creation of a new type of aeroplane.

In addition, leading manufacturers include Texas Instruments, Murata Manufacturing, Analogue Devices, Kemet, Micron, Maxim, IDT, AVX, Holt Integrated Circuits, Linear Technology, CIC, and ON Semiconductor.

The Russian Federation bought at least US$962.6 million in parts from these firms in 2023, a 19.7% decrease from 2022 but a 69.69% increase from 2021.

According to the survey, at least 58 of Russia's largest companies import the majority of their goods through third countries.

Skhemy discovered that Western electronics supply networks from manufacturers to Russian industries involve intermediaries from Hungary, Cyprus, Türkiye, China, and Russia.

It is also stated that the only major manufacturers whose supply to Russia decreased last year were Micron (34.56%) and IDT (-45.07%). Instead, many components enter the Russian Federation through the Japanese business Murata, which has previously indicated that it supervises its exports.

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