Torbjörn Becker on Sanctions Evasion Through Third Countries
Aftonbladet reports that Russian drones shot down in Ukraine contained ball bearings marked “SKF”, despite strict sanctions banning such exports. The Gothenburg-based manufacturer SKF is prohibited from selling to Russia under EU sanctions. Yet, Aftonbladet discovered SKF-branded ball bearings from the company’s Chinese factory inside Russian military drones.
SKF denies producing these parts, stating they are counterfeits. However, according to Russian customs data and Corisk’s analysis, up to half a billion SEK worth of SKF-labeled products may have entered Russia via indirect or shadow trade routes.
“It is a violation of sanctions if you knowingly sell a product to, for example, Turkey, and you know that the Turkish company will send it on to Russia,” said Torbjörn Becker, Director of the Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics (SITE), in an interview with Aftonbladet.
Becker also emphasized the complexity of tracing global supply chains. While counterfeit goods are common in sanctioned economies, he questioned whether Russia can replicate high-precision components like advanced ball bearings. Instead, Becker suggested that such copying might occur outside Russia before the products reach it through parallel trade networks.
To read the full investigation and Becker’s analysis, visit Aftonbladet and Göteborgs-Posten.
Further Reading
Sanctions on trade aim to disrupt Russia’s economic activity and military capabilities by restricting access to critical goods, technologies, and supply chains. These measures are designed to raise the cost of aggression and limit resources that sustain the war effort. Explore current research on trade sanctions in the Sanctions Portal Evidence Base.
Explore the main sanction packages imposed by Western allies after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Review Russian countermeasures, including retaliatory actions and domestic policies to reduce the sanctions’ impact. Visit the Timeline of Western Sanctions and Russian Countermeasures to learn more.
