by India Today World DeskAmidst the adverse impact of sanctions imposed on Russia by Western countries over the past 15 months, the country is reportedly arming its troops with components salvaged from domestic equipment.
A Senior Lecturer at the University of Brighton School of Business and Law, Dr. Lawrence Haar highlights how there are media reports of household appliance parts being used in the construction of missiles.
“They’re resourcing, we know there’s a lot of illegal trade going on through other countries, I’m telling you what I’ve read in the press as well. They’re resourcing things like computers that washing machines Used to go into and are now going into missiles,” Dr. Haar said while speaking to Express.co.uk.
Doctor. Defeat’s remarks come against the backdrop of US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo’s statement to the Senate, where she disclosed receiving reports from Ukrainians who claimed that Russian military equipment, upon analysis, “was found to be filled with semiconductors”. were what they took out of the dishwasher and refrigerator”.
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Since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in late February last year, US technology exports to Russia have dropped by about 70 percent, Secretary Raimondo said.
The UK has also implemented sanctions, including a ban on technology transfers and technical assistance to Russia, aimed at disrupting the country’s military operations in Ukraine. In addition, Russia’s crude oil and energy exports have suffered significantly due to these sanctions.
Dr. Haar, an expert in financial-economic theory applied to the energy, petroleum and natural resources sectors, believed that “the burden on the Russian economy is increasing by the day”.
Asked about the effects of Western sanctions on Moscow, he said, “They have managed to keep some of their exports, such as subsidized oil and natural gas, which are being sold at a slight discount elsewhere. They have access to capital.” Not there.” Within two or three years, the oil industry is going to start going away, the way it went in Venezuela.
Russia’s Gazprom lacks such capabilities, he said, despite relying on major international oil companies such as Shell and BP for technical support. He further underlined that the deteriorating condition of equipment received from the West would necessitate production cuts in the future.
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While Russia is attempting to replenish its dwindling resources, Dr. Haar believed that Moscow’s current position is untenable in the long run. “But at some point, their position becomes more and more narrow, more and more tense,” he said.
As Dr. Haar said, Russian oil is still flowing, though no longer going directly to Europe. Instead, it is redirected to India, China and Turkey, which buy it at heavily discounted prices. Some of the cheaply acquired Russian oil ends up back in Europe, especially when India refines it into fuel and resells it to the EU at competitive prices.
The Asian market has allowed Moscow to increase oil exports to levels not seen before the invasion of Ukraine. However, this growth hasn’t translated into revenue, as March figures show a 43 percent year-over-year decline for 2022, according to commodity tracking firm Kepler.
Recently, Moscow released a report stating that the country’s economy is set to shrink by 1.9 percent in the first quarter of 2023. The cumulative effects of sanctions and economic stress are becoming increasingly visible, putting pressure on Russia’s economic prospects.