Western allies are pressuring the United Arab Emirates to stop exporting critical goods to Russia. They want to deprive the Russian army of the necessary components for the war against Ukraine.
The Financial Times (FT) writes about it.
Officials from the US, EU and UK have visited the UAE in recent weeks to clarify a wide range of its trade restrictions and press officials over suspected sanctions violations.
The US government is concerned that the UAE is becoming a shipping hub for goods such as electronics that can be processed in Russia for military use. Of particular concern is the so-called re-export, when goods are routed through the UAE to bypass restrictions.
The head of the US Sanctions Coordination Office James OʼBrien, along with the EUʼs sanctions envoy David OʼSullivan and the director of the UKʼs sanctions office, visited the UAE last month to make their case.
"Our main request is that they stop re-exporting, admit that it is problematic," a Western official noted, adding that "talks are ongoing."
According to Russian customs data analyzed by the Free Russia Foundation, the export of electronic components from the UAE to Russia increased more than seven times last year and reached $283 million. In 2022, the UAE exported 15 times more microchips to Russia than a year earlier, while the volume of trade in these products increased to $24.3 million.
- A year after Russiaʼs war against Ukraine, Russian air carriers still use 467 Airbus and Boeing aircraft. At the beginning of 2022, there were 544 of them. According to the publication, Russian airlines canceled flights to the USA, Western Europe and allied countries, but increased the number of flights to Thailand, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, as well as to Armenia, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. Russian airports now serve approximately 270 international flights daily, compared to 300 a year ago.
- To preserve its civil aviation, the Kremlin has banned airlines from returning leased planes to their owners abroad and is encouraging carriers to re-register them in Russia. Therefore, most aircraft continue to fly, although they have no way to update the software and are cut off from the maintenance that should ensure their airworthiness. For example, in February, the Russian aviation regulator concluded an agreement with an engineering company from Dubai (UAE) called Global Jet Technic. She is the one who regularly checks the Airbus and Boeing planes used by Russian airlines before flights.