Machines from China: How Russian MIC works in the conditions of sanctions - analysts

American experts, given the share of import of equipment and its wear in the course of operation, have suggested that Russia will have to reduce the scale of their weapons programs in the coming years. Russian propagandists repeatedly spread doubtful statements that the defense production of the Russian Federation is expanding and able to satisfy the growing requests of the Ministry of Defense.

However, it is no secret that the Russian MIC is largely dependent on the import of industrial equipment. Jamestown Foundation has told about what prospects of development the Russian defense industry has. The authors of the material write that since the 2000s, for two decades, Russian defense has consistently purchased equipment in Germany, France, Japan, Taiwan, Italy, Sweden, South Korea and the USA.

For the production of modern weapons systems, the Russians have cooperated with companies such as Siemens, Fanuc, Mycronic, Akira Seiki, Mazatrol and Delta Electronics. However, after a full -scale invasion of Ukraine and the imposition of sanctions for the supply of critically important details became limited. "Russia's war against Ukraine led to a steady increase in machine imports.

In 2022, the proportion of imported machines in heavy machinery, including arms production, ranged from 60 to 80 percent, and the share of domestic production of machines exceeded 90 percent" on Russian sources. This year, the share of imported equipment for military production, the share of imported machines in all industries of Russia was estimated from 75 to 92 percent. At the same time, the import of machines from China (by more than 40%) and Taiwan (by 5%) increased significantly.

Meanwhile, the imports of Asian countries are not able to fully replace advanced industrial equipment previously imported from the US, Europe and Japan. Thus, the volume of imports of metalworking machines to Russia in 2021 was 11 433 pcs. worth $ 816. 8 million, and in 2022 it decreased to 9 074 pcs. $ 574.

1 million "without these deliveries, it would be impossible to maintain the current range of Russian programs for advanced military research and development, as well as the production of weapons," - experts emphasize. At the same time, attempts to solve production problems by applying Western machine tool technologies were not successful due to a serious scarcity.

With regard to domestic production of equipment, it is definitely increasing, but still not sufficient for the full replacement of imported samples. In addition, the wear of the equipment should also be taken into account, and in Western sanctions, this trend seems more and more irreversible.

And even if Russia tries to find the detour paths of supply of parts or increase the share of imports of Chinese equipment, among the weapons companies will be fierce competition for access to equipment and qualified personnel "this means that Russia will have to reduce the number and extent of its weapons programs in the near future years. These problems will be further exacerbated on the Ukrainian Front for Moscow, "the observers summed up.