Sanctions violations: Russia imports €1 billion worth of aviation parts despite restrictions
Photo: Russia possesses many stolen Boeing aircraft (Getty Images)
Despite sanctions, Russia has managed to import over one billion euros worth of aviation parts since 2022, primarily for Western-made Airbus and Boeing airliners, according to an investigation by the outlet Yle.
After Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the West imposed strict sanctions on the Kremlin, including in the civil aviation sector. It was expected that these restrictions would effectively paralyze the industry.
However, that did not happen, primarily because Russia managed to set up sanction evasion schemes. Since 2022, according to the investigation, Russia has managed to purchase at least 600 million euros’ worth of Airbus parts and nearly 400 million euros’ worth of Boeing components.
Western parts are crucial for Russia: as of March 2022, there were over 500 Western-made aircraft leased to Russian carriers. Russia never returned these planes — in other words, it simply seized them. But to keep them operational, spare parts are needed — something difficult to manage without direct access.
Nevertheless, Russia quickly found workarounds. It buys components from third countries that do not adhere to the sanctions regime. Another supply route involves front companies — shell firms based in Türkiye, China, and the United Arab Emirates. More than 360 companies around the world were involved in these deliveries, some reportedly tied to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle.
Additionally, Russia has been able to purchase used aircraft parts. While their quality is lower, they are cheaper and — unlike new components — the secondhand market is much harder to regulate.
Airbus and Boeing did not respond to detailed questions from the outlet. Instead, they sent generic statements claiming compliance with the sanctions regime, but failed to elaborate on how that compliance is enforced, and ignored follow-up questions.
Sanctions against Russia
A new, 18th package of sanctions against Russia could be adopted as early as this week. So far, difficulties have arisen due to the positions of the Hungarian and Slovak governments.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized this evening that EU countries must adopt a strong 18th sanctions package against Russia. In his view, the primary target should be the aggressor’s energy revenues.
