"[E]very scheme to circumvent sanctions is a crime against people and the world. It is precisely such schemes that allow Russia to help build the strength of the Iranian and North Korean regimes. This is a global threat. And only global, special pressure can overcome it." ~ Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky
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. . . Russia launched over 2,000 Shahed-type drones at Ukraine in October, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Nov. 2, while urging Western allies to apply more sanctions against the providers of components used in Russian drones.
Russia continues to avoid sanctions through the use of sanctions evasion networks and shell companies. Russia is also aided in sanctions evasion through its allies, including China, Iran, and North Korea.
"This volume of 'Shahed' drones means over 170,000 components that should have been blocked from reaching Russia," Zelensky said in his evening address. "Microchips, microcontrollers, processors, and many other parts are essential for enabling this terror."
"All of these are supplied to Russia from abroad, unfortunately, from companies in China, Europe, and America—a multitude of small but significant contributions to Russia’s ongoing terror," Zelensky added.
Zelensky's comments come as Russia launched a mass drone attack on Kyiv on Nov. 2, which caused a fire in a 16-story residential building and an office building, and left an 82-year-old woman with shrapnel injuries to the head.
During his evening address, Zelensky called for sanctions against companies that deliver components to Russia to be made more expansive and effective.
Zelensky's comments come a few days after the United States imposed sanctions on Oct. 30 against nearly 400 entities and individuals directly or indirectly involved in supporting Russia in its war against Ukraine.
The limitations applied to companies involved in sanctions evasion networks in 17 jurisdictions, including China, India, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Thailand, and Turkey, according to the U.S. Treasury Department.
On Nov. 1, the U.S. imposed a $500,000 against GlobalFoundries for shipping chips without authorization to an affiliate of sanctioned Chinese chipmaker SMIC, Reuters reported.
Russia has launched tens of thousands of cheap but effective Iranian-designed Shahed-type drones against Ukraine since the fall of 2022.
Photo: Oleg Palchyk/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images
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