The United States is finding out how American electronics came into Russian arms
During the fighting in Ukraine, it established that Russian military equipment uses components of American origin. In particular, chips and components of American companies have been found in Russian radar systems, communications equipment, drones, missile remnants, tanks, ground control equipment and ships. And now the US government is trying to figure out how this could have happened.
A joint investigation by the Department of Commerce, which provides export controls, and the FBI is under way. As part of the investigation, agents from both agencies are jointly visiting companies whose components were found in Russian military equipment.
A Commerce Department official said the main purpose of the investigation was to try to track the supply of components to a US supplier.
‘The fact that the chip, the company’s chip, was found in the armed system does not mean that we have launched an investigation into this company,’ – the official added. ‘However, we have begun an investigation into how this company’s chip got into this system.’
So far, there is no detailed information on which electronic components are involved in the investigation. Investigators from different countries have identified Western electronics in Russian weapons found in Ukraine. Some of these components appear to have been produced many years ago, before the United States tightened export restrictions following Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014. But some components were relatively new. The Conflict Armament Research (CAR), which studied the details, says a number of Western components in Russian military equipment were manufactured in 2017-2020. Last month, the CAR sent investigators to Ukraine to study Russian weapons and communications. The group said it had identified components from 70 companies based in the United States and Europe. The list of companies is not named.
For many years, companies could legally sell basic computer chips to the Russian military without prior permission from the US government. Therefore, to detect an illegal supply, it is necessary to determine the type of chip and the date of sale. Tracking transactions can be time-consuming, as electronic components often go through a chain of distributors before reaching the end user. Investigators are now throwing a ‘wide grid’ at many different chips and electronic components to track their paths to Russia’s armed forces.
