Thread by @RUSI_org

🚨A new investigation from @OSIA_RUSI and RUSI's Military Sciences team, in collaboration with @Reuters and @istories_media, examines the supply chains that have continued to move Western components into #Russia since the February 24 invasion of #Ukraine.
rusi.org/explore-our-re…

The report focuses on the #Orlan-10 - the #UAV that sits at the heart of Russia’s warfighting capabilities. Fieldwork conducted by RUSI in Ukraine over the course of 2022 confirmed that the sub-systems of the Orlan-10 are heavily reliant on foreign-made microelectronics.

The Orlan-10 is manufactured by St. Petersburg-based Special Technologies Centre LLC (STC). The US sanctioned STC in 2016 for the company’s support of 🇷🇺interference in the 2016 U.S. Presidential elections. Since February, STC has come under further 🇺🇸 🇬🇧 🇨🇦 🇹🇼 and 🇯🇵 sanctions.

Since the February 2022 invasion, companies closely associated with STC have drastically increased imports of Western-manufactured components. This may be indicative of efforts to bypass Western sanctions through the use of front companies and third-country jurisdictions.

Financial records seen by @Reuters and @istories_media show that STC has paid large volumes of money to another St. Petersburg-based company called SMT-iLogic.
reuters.com/world/europe/g…

Our investigation was able to further link STC and SMT-iLogic through their shareholders, personnel, addresses and co-authored patents.

As an undesignated entity, SMT-iLogic was likely able to serve as a deniable vehicle for STC to procure components from suppliers located outside of Russia. To do this, it relied on a large, decentralised network of suppliers in Europe, Asia and North America.

The suppliers we identified in our investigation include Florida-based IK Tech and Hong Kong-based Sinno Electronics (sanctioned by US).

In February of 2022, the owner of IK Tech, a Russian and US national, was arrested by the US government for allegedly smuggling export-controlled goods to SMT-iLogic and another St. Peterburg based company named Device Consulting.

But the largest supplier in the trade data reviewed by RUSI was Hong Kong-based company Asia Pacific Links. Between Feb and Oct 2022, Asia Pacific Links shipped $5M of microelectronics to SMT-iLogic.

The firm is operated by a Russian national allegedly residing in Toronto, Canada who operates companies in Canada, China, Hong Kong and Macao

This investigation has once again demonstrated the reliance of Russian military manufacturers on Western components and the use of front companies in Europe, Asia and North America to source them.

You can read the full report on our website now!