Two men from an investigative group that tracks weapons pried open Russian weapons and equipment that had been captured across Ukraine with the help of a soldering gun.
The investigators pulled apart every piece of advanced Russian hardware they could get their hands on during their visit to Ukraine last month. The researchers, who were invited by the Ukrainian security service to independently analyze advanced Russian gear, found that almost all of it included parts from companies in the US and Europe.
Western chips have been used to build advanced Russian weapons and communications systems. Russian companies have had unfettered access to Western technology for a long time.
The United States is proud of its ability to supply technology to the rest of the world. The tools that Russian forces are using to wage war are powered by American innovation.
The situation has given the United States and its allies an important source of leverage against Russia. The United States and dozens of countries have used export bans to cut off shipments of advanced technology, hobbling Russia's ability to produce weapons to replace those that have been destroyed in the war.
The Biden administration added 71 organizations to a government list that prevents them from buying advanced technology on Thursday. The Treasury Department imposed sanctions on a company that caters to Russians.
The Biden administration has called the measures a success, even though some analysts have cautioned against drawing early conclusions. According to a senior U.S. official, Russia has had difficulty obtaining microchips to replenish its supply of precision-guided munitions since Western allies announced extensive restrictions on exports.
Gina Raimondo, who oversees export controls, said that the answer was "an unqualified yes."
She said that US exports to Russia have fallen by over 90 percent since February 24. That's really bad.
Direct technological exports from the US to Russia have been halted. They also place restrictions on certain high-tech goods that are manufactured anywhere in the world using American machinery, software or blueprints. It means that countries that aren't part of the sanctions coalition with the US and Europe have to follow the rules or face their own sanctions.
Customs data from Russia's major trading partners show that shipments of essential parts and components have plummeted since the invasion. Russian imports of manufactured goods from nine major economies for which data is available were down by 51 percent in April compared with the same month in the previous year.
Mr. Klein wrote that the old-school bombing runs on tank factories and shipyards of past wars are no longer needed. The Russians depend on imported equipment so the democracies can replicate the effect of bombing runs with the right sanctions.
Russia is one of the world's largest arms exporters, but it relies a lot on imports. About half of the military-related equipment and services the country needed, such as transportation equipment, computers, optical equipment, machinery, fabricated metal and other goods, were satisfied by Russian sources.
The United States, Europe, Japan, Taiwan, Australia and other countries imposed sanctions on Moscow, which resulted in the import of equipment and services from other countries.
The export controls have been effective due to a wide variety of other sanctions. Russian tank factories have had to deal with shortages of parts and have been forced to lay off workers. According to the U.S. government, the Russian military is trying to find parts for satellites, goggles and other equipment.
Other Russian industries have been hurt by technology restrictions. Up to 70 percent of the commercial airplanes operated by Russian airlines, which no longer receive spare parts and maintenance from Airbus and Boeing, are grounded, according to officials.
Some experts have warned of the risks. Michael Kofman, the director of Russia studies at CNA, a research institute in Arlington, Va., voiced skepticism about some claims that the export controls were forcing some tank factories and other defense companies in Russia to close.
There isn't much evidence to support reports of problems in Russia's defense sector He said it was too early in the war to know if there would be supply chain problems.
Maria Snegovaya, a visiting scholar at George Washington University who has studied sanctions on Russia, said that the lack of critical technologies and maintenance were likely to start being felt across Russian industry in the fall. She and other analysts said that the production of daily goods such as printer paper would be affected, because Russian companies had bought the dye to turn the paper white from Western companies.
There will be more disruptions in Russia's production chains. Are Russian companies capable of finding replacements?
The Russian government and companies have been unsuccessful in getting around the controls. Any company that helps Russia evade sanctions will be cut off from U.S. technology.
There is a conflict. The stock market has been badly affected by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. There have been spikes in gas prices and product shortages due to the conflict.
The global growth rate is slowing. The aftermath of the war has made it hard for major economies to recover from the Pandemic and has made it hard for people to believe in the economy. In the United States, the GDP fell in the first quarter of the year.
Russia's economy is facing a downturn. The Russian economy has been spared a collapse thanks to capital controls and interest rate increases. Russia is likely to face a steep economic downturn as its inventory of imported goods and parts is low, according to the central bank chief.
Barriers are going up. The invasion of Ukraine has led to the creation of new barriers to stop exports as governments try to protect their citizens from shortages and rising costs. The products are more expensive due to the restrictions.
The prices of essential metals go up. Concerns that Russia could be cut off from global markets have caused the price of palladium to soar. The price of nickel has been going up.
In an interview last month, Ms. Raimondo said that the United States was not seeing any systematic circumvention of the export controls by any country. The country was trying very hard to get around the global coalition of allies that had imposed export controls.
She said that the world knows how serious the situation is. There will be consequences for companies that try to get around the controls.
The data shows that most companies are following the restrictions. Chinese exports to Russia have fallen since the invasion.
Mr. Spleeters said that Russia's military had been able to circumvent restrictions on technology imports by using a variety of methods, including buying foreign products by way of front companies, third countries or civil distributors.
Some actors tried to hide the presence of Western technology in Russian equipment. Mr. Spleeters and his colleague went to Kyiv, the capital of Ukranian, and removed three of the radios that were held in them.
The first two were found to have parts of their manufacturing marks obliterated in order to hide their origin. There was an identical chip inside the third radio that had been slipped by the Russian censors. Mr. Spleeters said his group wouldn't release the names of the manufacturers until he asked how their wares ended up in the hands of the Russian military.
Mr. Spleeters said it was not clear who altered the markings or when the chips were delivered to Russia, but he said the attempt to hide their origin was intentional. The United States imposed restrictions on the shipment of Russian high-tech items that could help its military abilities after the Russian invasion of the Black Sea peninsula.
Mr. Spleeters said that it might have been erased with a tool. Someone knows what they're doing.
He said that it was not clear whether the sanctions would result in a fundamental reduction of supplies to Moscow.
The remnants of three different Russian drones were examined by his team. There are six separate parts from companies with headquarters in the United States and one each from companies in Switzerland and Japan. They pulled parts from corporations in the US, China, Germany, the Netherlands, South Korea, Sweden and Taiwan in the other two drones.
Mr. Spleeters asked a member of the Ukrainian security service about the findings of their research.
The officer said it was just business.
Mr. Spleeters said that people were just selling chips and not knowing what they would be used for. They wouldn't be able to know who would use them and what purpose they'd serve.
Eric was a contributor.
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