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Austria breaks up sanctions-evasion scheme aiding Russian arms industry
Russia is at war, and many countries agreed not to sell Russia special tools and machines that can be used to make weapons.
Some people tried to get around these rules.
A company in Vienna, Austria, secretly sent metalworking machines to Russia.
These machines can help build engines for rockets and fighter jets.
The company lied on its paperwork so nobody would know where the machines were going.
It also used small companies in other countries to hide the shipments.
Police found out, arrested the company's boss (a 28-year-old man from Belarus), and seized machines and tools worth about €140,000.
Investigators believe the company sent more than €3.3 million worth of goods to Russian weapons makers since 2022.
The suspect is now in jail while the investigation continues.
Austria's interior ministry said it broke up a scheme in which a Vienna-based company supplied equipment used to make engines for Russian missiles and fighter jets, in breach of EU sanctions.
The unnamed company concealed shipments through shell companies in Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, South Korea, Poland and Lithuania.
The company falsified end-user certificates to supply special metalworking tools and CNC machines, which were sent to companies affiliated with Russian state conglomerate Rostec.
The 28-year-old Belarusian head of the company was arrested in May and remains in custody; authorities seized CNC machines and specialised tools worth about €140,000 ($162,000).
Evidence from four raids in August last year indicated industrial goods worth more than €3.3 million had been delivered to Russian arms manufacturers since 2022.
- Who
- Austria's interior ministry, the junior minister for intelligence Joerg Leichtfried, a Vienna-based company run by a 28-year-old Belarusian man, and Russian state industrial conglomerate Rostec.
- What
- Dismantled an EU sanctions-evasion scheme supplying metalworking tools and CNC machines used to make engines for Russian cruise missiles and fighter jets.
- Where
- Vienna, Austria, with shipments routed through shell companies in Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, South Korea, Poland and Lithuania.
- When
- Announced on Monday, August 10; the suspect was arrested in May; evidence came from raids in August last year.
- Why
- To circumvent European Union sanctions and support Russia's arms industry.
Key facts
- Suspect
- 28-year-old Belarusian head of the unnamed Vienna-based company, arrested in May and held in custody
- Seized equipment value
- CNC machines and specialised tools worth about €140,000 ($162,000)
- Total goods delivered
- More than €3.3 million in industrial goods to Russian arms manufacturers since 2022
- Equipment type
- Special metalworking tools and CNC machines
- Recipient
- Companies affiliated with Russian state industrial conglomerate Rostec
- Evasion method
- Falsified end-user certificates and shell companies in nine jurisdictions
- Announcement
- Austrian interior ministry statement on August 10
Quotes
Joerg Leichtfried
Austria's junior minister in charge of intelligence
“It is unacceptable for high-precision European technology to be diverted towards the production of cruise missiles and air‑defence systems.”
theprint.in
Sources
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