Russia Secretly Sourcing Sensitive Goods From India To Support Its War Effort In Ukraine: Report

Russia is secretly acquiring sensitive goods from India to support its war effort in Ukraine, Financial Times reported citing leaked state correspondence and Western officials. 

The Russian industry and trade ministry reportedly planned in October 2022 to spend about Rs 82 billion ($1billion at the time) on securing critical electronics through channels hidden from western governments.

The initiative aimed to use rupees accumulated from oil sales to India and sought dual-use technologies subject to Western export controls.

Moscow even envisaged pumping investment into Russo-Indian electronics development and production facilities, the FT reported citing leaked files.

According to the report, the extent to which Moscow enacted its plan is unclear, but detailed trade flow data suggest the Russian relationship with India has grown deeper in the specific categories of goods identified in the correspondence.

The leaked exchange of letters mentions paying for two specific customs categories of goods, types of electronics and machinery, in rupees.

Russian filings show that trade in these categories has soared from negligible volumes in mid-2022.

An Indian company, Innovio Ventures, was listed in trade declarations as the supplier of at least $4.9mn of electronic equipment, including drones, to Russia as well as $600,000 of goods shipped to Kyrgyzstan, the FT report said.

The transactions were reportedly listed in Russian filings as settled in rupees.

The shipments to Russia include $568,000 of electronic equipment for use in radio-electronic systems to a Russian company called Testkomplekt, which has been hit by US and EU sanctions for being at the heart of Moscow’s military procurement system.

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