Who is supplying Russia’s arms industry?

DESPITE WESTERN sanctions, Russia’s arms industry is booming. Its production of crucial weapons for its war effort in Ukraine has dramatically increased since the start of the fighting. By the start of this year the monthly capacity for long-range missiles, for example, was thought to have more than doubled. The growth is made possible by new international suppliers, who provide parts, electronics and tools.

Piecing together this supply chain is difficult; the goods are often traded via a complex network of shell companies. But a study of trade data by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a think-tank in Washington, DC, suggests that many of the imports lead back to one country (see charts 1 and 2).