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Two companies mentioned in an investigation by The Insider — JSC Lomo and JSC Kolomensky Zavod — have been added to the EU's 12th sanctions list.
Both firms appeared in a piece titled BiZness as usual: 25 European companies still supplying the Russian army by Sergei Ezhov in May 2023.
JSC Lomo produces Mowgli-2 and Mowgli-2M night vision sights for portable anti-aircraft missile systems. Lomo's semi-active homing head is also used to equip high-precision Krasnopol missiles. The company has imported products from Estonia.
JSC Kolomensky Zavod makes diesel engines for warships. The plant has imported components from Switzerland, Lithuania, Austria, Poland and Germany.
However, the owners of Kolomensky Zavod, Andrei Bokarev and Iskander Makhmudov, have not been subject to personal sanctions and can continue to holiday in their villas in France, according to investigator Sergei Ezhov. Other war profiteers are also avoiding sanctions.
The previous EU sanctions package included JSC NPP Class from the same investigation.
On December 18, the EU adopted the twelfth package of sanctions against Russia, with over 60 individuals and some 90 legal entities falling under the latest round of restrictions.
The sanctioned individuals include:
- Ilya Medvedev, son of Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev;
- Viktor Chikhanchin, head of Rosfinmonitoring;
- Oleg Khorokhordin, head of the Altai Republic;
- Radiy Khabirov, head of the Republic of Bashkortostan;
- Boris Obnosov, head of the Tactical Missile Armament Corporation;
- Uralvagonzavod CEO Alexander Potapov;
- Ilya Kurilov, head of the Imperial Tula Arms Plant.
The sanctioned legal entities include, but are not limited to:
- Russia’s Federal Financial Monitoring Service (Rosfinmonitoring) — a watchdog in charge of financial crimes, which also provides lists of people accused of terrorist or «extremist» activities;
- The TV channels Tsargrad and Spas;
- Private military companies (PMCs): Redut, Andreevsky Krest, Fakel, Potok, Tsar's Wolves (Tsarskie Volki), Convoy;
- The Victory Volunteers (“Volontery Pobedy”) movement;
- the All-Russian Society Znanie;
- JSC Spetsmash;
- The Perm Powder Plant;
- The “Agat” Research Institute;
- The Vympel Ship Design Bureau;
- JSC Aviastar-SP;
- The Ural Transport Machine Building Plant;
- NPP Topaz;
- NPP Salyut;
- JSC Lomo;
- PJSC Tupolev;
- The Imperial Tula Arms Plant;
- JSC Mikron;
- JSC Krymtelecom;
- LLC Miranda-media.
The EU will also impose a direct ban on imports of non-industrial natural diamonds, synthetic diamonds and jewels with diamonds from Russia to EU countries from 1 January 2024 (by which date all G7 countries will impose such a ban). The EU is also banning the import of liquefied petroleum gases (propane, butane and their mixtures) from Russia, as well as imports of pig iron, ferro-alloys, iron, copper and aluminum wire, foil and some pipes.
Russian economist Sergei Aleksashenko explained that the new sanctions will, among other things, allow countries to pass laws authorizing the confiscation of Russian assets frozen in the West. They can, in turn, be used to compensate companies whose assets are owned or managed by the Russian Federation.
The Insider has previously shown that sanctions against Russian defense companies do not have an impact on Western supplies. The necessary equipment is imported by military contractors who have avoided being placed on sanctions lists. European businessmen sell goods to Russian companies that supply the army with microchips for missiles, bullet casings, fuses, soldiers' shoes, body armor, engines for warships, and many other goods. Supplies come from Germany, France, Switzerland, Hungary, Slovakia, Italy, Estonia, Lithuania, Austria, and Poland.