Russia receives weapons components through Ukraine’s allies - The Insider
Russian companies import tantalum capacitors, which are used to manufacture missiles and drones, through a number of countries, including Ukraine’s allies.
According to Censor.NET, The Insider writes about it.
It is noted that Russia is unable to produce tantalum capacitors, which are an important element of electronics and are used in the military industry and avionics, in particular in the "Corsair" and "Shahed" UAVs.
Capacitors made by the Japanese-American manufacturer Kyocera AVX have been purchased this year and previously by Russian JSC "NIKIRET" (a Rosatom company), the Roskhimzakhyst Institute, the State Research Institute of Aviation Systems, and the FSS military unit 45187, journalists write.
Some companies from the Russian Federation and Kyrgyzstan are under sanctions for illegal imports of tantalum capacitors.
Despite the fact that these capacitors can be found in any electronics, it has been established that foreign parts are used in weapons used by Russia against Ukraine, including X-101 missiles. This became known through the analysis of Russian equipment shot down in Ukraine. Foreign tantalum parts were found in the NACP's "War and Sanctions" database.
Among others, tantalum capacitors are produced by Kyocera AVX, Vishay and KEMET Corporation. Their headquarters are located in the US, but their products end up in Russia and then in Ukraine in the form of missiles.
Details from El Salvador, Israel and Mexico
El Salvador, home to the Japanese-American Kyocera AVX plant, is one of the world's leading exporters of capacitors. As The Insider has found out, it is the capacitors manufactured by Kyocera AVX in El Salvador that are used in Russian missiles. In 2021, a quarter of all capacitor supplies came directly to Russia from El Salvador. Now they are likely to be transported through China - a significant portion of the capacitors that came to Russia from China in 2023 are marked "El Salvador" in the "country of origin" column in the customs databases.
American Vishay's products, which are manufactured at a plant in Israel, are imported to Russia mainly from China and Hong Kong, but also from Cyprus and Hungary. According to journalists' estimates, in 2023, Russia received tantalum capacitors manufactured by the Israeli Vishay plant for about $1.3 million. In response to a question from The Insider about the use of Vishay capacitors in Russian weapons, the company said it had blocked supplies to Russia shortly after the start of the war in Ukraine.
The top three countries in terms of imports of tantalum capacitors to Russia are Mexico, where the US-based Kemet's production facilities are located. In 2023, according to The Insider, Kemet tantalum capacitors worth at least $6 million were imported to Russia. The capacitors are shipped to Hungary from Hong Kong and then imported to Russia with the help of the Hungarian company Matrix Metal Group.
Lithuania
On paper, the easiest way to import dual-use goods from El Salvador or China into the European Union is through Vilnius. Lithuanian customs brokers help with the supply of tantalum capacitors. In particular, Vinges Terminalas and Autoverslo Logistika. Judging by the declarations that the journalists obtained, the parts were imported to Lithuania for further shipment to Russia.
