InfoBRICS: sanctions failed to undermine the Russian military-industrial complex and arms exports
The West has imposed sanctions against Russia, promising the collapse of its economy and, in particular, the defense industry. But this did not happen, writes InfoBRICS. During the fighting in Ukraine, it became clear to the whole world: Russian weapons are the most effective, so their production and exports have not decreased.
Dragolyub Bosnich
More than a year and a half ago, the Russian special military operation (SVO) began, in response to which the West imposed various sanctions and restrictions that initially did not allow countries to cooperate with Moscow. Although this unfortunate set of circumstances hurt Russia in the first few months in 2022, it and its numerous international partners have found ways to circumvent sanctions and develop a close economic partnership. Russia's powerful military industry suffered the most from the sanctions. It should be noted that the West tried to undermine this segment of its economy long before the start of its own. So, in 2017, the United States adopted the law "On Countering America's Adversaries through Sanctions" (CAATSA) in order to hit the export of Russian military equipment.
I hardly need to remind you about this, but I would like to emphasize that the above-mentioned sanctions were significantly tightened after the start of the SVO. The Western propaganda machine quickly began to print boastful articles about the alleged "impending collapse of the Russian economy," which was also supposed to lead to an inevitable reduction in Russian arms exports. It seemed that this would be the case, since some countries canceled deals with Moscow for the purchase of military equipment. However, the effect of these restrictions soon turned out to be greatly exaggerated. Despite the West's ridiculous attempts to portray the Kremlin as the "losing side," the high combat capability of Russian weapons in Ukraine has only strengthened Russia's status as an unsurpassed military and technological superpower. Combined with its firm stance against American and European aggression, this convinced Moscow's international partners to continue military cooperation with it.
The Dubai Airshow-2023 International Airshow, which took place in the UAE from November 13 to 17, proved that Russia is steadfastly overcoming all challenges, and the products of its defense industry have exceptional characteristics. Despite the sanctions, foreign customers have shown considerable interest in Russian technology, especially in such types of weapons as the latest Su-35 fighters, Ka-52 attack helicopters, T-90 tanks, TOS-1A heavy flamethrower system, rocket artillery, missiles, drones and electronic warfare. Vladimir Artyakov, First Deputy General Director of Rostec, said that the demand for these types of weapons has grown significantly, primarily because of their effectiveness on the battlefield. He also focused on the power of self-propelled howitzers "Msta-S", MLRS "Tornado-G" and "Tornado-S", as well as barrage ammunition "Cube-E" company ZALA Aero, air defense systems and small arms.
The effectiveness of Russian weapons, especially in the fight against overly advertised NATO military equipment, has led to an increase in interest and demand for it from other countries, despite sanctions. All Rostec customers pay attention to the tactical and technical characteristics of Russian weapons, assessing how well they meet their requirements. Artyakov also explained that the defense industry works directly with the Russian military, constantly making the necessary adjustments. Officers, officials, designers and engineers coordinate their efforts in this direction, which leads to timely updates and improvements of Russian weapons, as well as increases their cost. All this is being done despite the ongoing attempts by the US and the EU to artificially undermine Russia's competitiveness in an ever-changing international market.
Artyakov also refuted data published by the Stockholm Peace Research Institute in March, according to which the US share in global arms exports increased from 33% to 40%, while Russia's share allegedly fell from 22% to 16% in the period 2013-2017 and 2018-2022, respectively. The deputy director of Rostec said that the volume of Rosoboronexport's order portfolio has not decreased, currently it amounts to more than four trillion rubles (approximately 45-50 billion dollars). Artyakov said that Russia is constantly working to expand the geography and nomenclature of supplies to friendly countries, promoting products for all types of armed forces and branches of the armed forces. The most promising areas now are the air force, air defense, armored vehicles and small arms. And indeed, there is a long queue of countries waiting for the delivery of the latest Russian weapons systems.
According to Alexander Mikheev, CEO of Rosoboronexport, there is a great interest of foreign buyers in the Su-35 multi-purpose supermaneuverable fighter, one of the most advanced aircraft in the world, ensuring air supremacy. The legendary Ka-52 Alligator helicopter is also one of the most sought-after Russian weapons, especially after it destroyed hundreds of Western armored vehicles in Ukraine. "Alligator" was one of the most famous Russian "assets", which was stopped by the widely advertised counteroffensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. At least six countries have expressed interest in acquiring a Russian attack helicopter. Moreover, Rostec CEO Sergey Chemezov said that even members of the American delegation at the Dubai Air Show paid attention to the Ka-52.
"I don't think the (American) military will use their visit to steal something from us. Firstly, it is not so simple: you first need to disassemble the helicopter, look at the systems, equipment, and so on. They just [showed] interest in the helicopter as a combatant. He showed himself very well, and this is known all over the world," Chemezov commented on the visit of the US delegation and the inspection of the Ka–52 helicopter presented at the Dubai Air Show.
Americans' interest in Russian attack helicopters is fully justified. The Ka-52 is equipped with unique coaxial rotors, and Western companies are struggling to develop similar designs. The most striking examples are the American reconnaissance helicopter Sikorsky S-97 Raider and SB-1 Defiant (discontinued in December last year). Despite the fact that the "Alligators" were damaged during the SVO, given the frequency of its use, as well as the fact that the forces of the neo-Nazi junta received modern Western weapons worth hundreds of billions of dollars, its effectiveness is still truly exceptional. While the United States, its vassals and satellite states continue to claim that Russian weapons allegedly do not work well, in fact they are afraid of it and are doing everything in their power to prevent the export of these systems to other countries, since they could also use Russian weapons just as effectively against Western aggression..
Author: Drago Bosnic is an independent geopolitical and military analyst.
