Western chip suppliers, including major American players like Intel and AMD, have continued to ship semiconductors toward Russia despite sanctions. Newsroom reporting tracks how these goods reach the country through routes that are not officially sanctioned, relying on a network of smaller, lesser known firms.
The reporting highlights shipments that move through intermediaries based in places such as Turkey, Hong Kong, and Estonia. One Tallinn-based distributor, Elmec Trade Oü, is described as having moved at least $17 million worth of electronic components into Russia from April through October. The larger pattern points to a flow of microchips that skirts formal restrictions by using these back channels.
From February 2022 onward, the aggregate value of imported microchips by Russia has climbed, and recent calculations show foreign chip purchases totaling about $2.6 billion from April through November this year. The sums indicate a sustained demand for advanced components even as official constraints remain in place.
Company documents cited by investigators tie several suppliers, including entities in Hong Kong and Turkey, to individuals connected to Russia. The findings also indicate that components from well known American designers Texas Instruments and Analog Devices, along with the German company Infineon Technologies, have found their way into the Russian market.
Earlier reporting noted legal actions by Dutch authorities against a man involved in supplying microchips to Russia, underscoring ongoing enforcement efforts to monitor and curb illicit trade in sensitive technology. Reuters