Americans' appetite for fish is helping fund the invasion of Ukraine — despite an import ban on Russian seafood

The US banned the import of Russian seafood after the invasion of Ukraine, but it hasn't stopped it from flowing across the border.

Russian pollock, salmon, and wild-caught fish are still being bought, sold, and eaten by Americans thanks to seafood processing in China and loose country of origin labeling laws in the US, according to an Associated Press report.

On March 11th, President Joe Biden announced a ban on imports of seafood, diamonds, and vodka from Russia as part of a series of measures intended to punish President Putin for launching a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24.

Russian seafood companies can get their products to the US by going through China, where seafood from Russian waters is already processed.

Almost one-third of wild-caught fish imported into the US from China actually originated in Russia, according to a study by the International Trade Commission. The study found that 50% of pollock and 75% of salmon imported into the US from China were actually from Russia.

The fish can be labeled as a product of China when it is exported to the US because a country of origin isn't required.

The son of a former Putin official and son-in-law of a sanctions-evading tycoon is the owner of two of the largest seafood exporters in Russia. He won major crab-fishing rights from the Russian government in 2019.

Frank shows how close the Russian seafood industry is to the Kremlin. A major campaign against Russian elites and their families was part of the reason why he was sanctioned by the US last month. He sold part of his ownership in the companies after the sanctions.

Despite its own import ban on oil and gas, the US has been unable to cut Russia off from their profits. Some European countries have banned Russian oil, but others are dependent on it, like Italy and Germany, as well as countries like China and India.