Russia uses Rosatom as a loophole to buy electronics for missiles to evade sanctions — MFA
This was stated by Oleksandra Vasylenko, Director of the Department of Economic Diplomacy and Sanctions Policy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, during a roundtable discussion on "How to make sanctions against Russia's nuclear industry more effective?", an Ukrinform correspondent reports.
She noted that nuclear energy provides Russia with almost $9 billion in annual revenue and that Russia uses Rosatom to supply technology.
She explained that Rosatom companies are located in the United States, European jurisdictions, and the Middle East, which allows them to purchase, for example, microchips and electronics that will be used in the production of missiles and military equipment.
"Ukraine is constantly calling for sanctions against the Russian nuclear energy sector at all levels, from the President to working contacts, due to their direct involvement in crimes at civilian nuclear facilities in Ukraine. Our primary goal is to ensure the effectiveness of the sanctions already imposed and to see uncompromising and tough action by the international community to guarantee the political, economic, and legal consequences of this terrorist activity," emphasized Vasylenko.
She reminded that Ukraine has already imposed sanctions against 200 legal entities and 200 individuals in the Russian nuclear industry, including Rosatom and other enterprises and institutions belonging to the nuclear energy sector.
"We are also constantly advocating for our Ukrainian sanctions to be reflected in the sanctions policies of our partners," Vasylenko said.
In this context, she reminded that the sanctions packages introduced on February 24, 2023, by the United Kingdom and the United States contain certain sanctions against some Rosatom legal entities located in the territory or jurisdiction of these states.
According to Vasylenko, this is a positive signal of progress, given that there were no sanctions against the Russian nuclear sector before.
As reported, according to PAP's sources in the European Union, three EU countries - France, Hungary, and Bulgaria - are blocking the introduction of EU sanctions against Russia's nuclear energy sector, particularly the state-owned Rosatom.
