Russian weapons dealers skirt Western sanctions

Several dozen Russian oligarchs and arms dealers have circumvented sanctions imposed by the EU, UK and US in the wake of the Ukraine war, according to Reuters.

Some weapons tycoons are still not subject to Western sanctions.

shutterstock.com/Bumble Dee

The news agency also wrote that some Russian companies operating in the defence sector have not been sanctioned by the West. The most notable example is VSMPO-AVISMA, the world’s largest titanium supplier, which is controlled by Rostec, Russia’s state-run defence conglomerate.

Even though most Russian firms operating in the defence sector have faced sanctions from the West, some of its leaders still sidestep political repercussions of the Russian invasion.

One company owner who evaded the sanctions is Alan Lushnikov, a majority shareholder of arms maker Kalashnikov, which accounts for 95% of Russia’s production of machine guns, sniper rifles and pistols, wrote Reuters, quoting the concern’s annual report.

Following the Reuters report, some of the companies have been met with sanctions, but most of their top executives are still escaping consequences in the wake of the Russian onslaught against Ukraine.

(pjm)

 Source: Reuters, PAP