It has been revealed that a Russian company operating in Finland was exporting products used in military supplies to Russia. The customers of these companies have ties to Russia’s services and defense sectors.
This information was reported by Yle.
Investigators have identified several companies registered in Finland with ties to Russia. However, their customers have ties to Russian law enforcement agencies.
A total of about 20 companies were confirmed to be exporting parts that can be used in the defense industry to Russia.
These are small logistics companies whose founders have ties to Russia, and whose offices are primarily located in small premises near major distribution centers in southeastern Russia.
Materials for the war against Ukraine
One of the companies targeted for surveillance operates in the Lappeenranta region. Customs data revealed that the company supplied Russia with a variety of products, including sensors, diesel engines, fuel pumps and parts for car transmissions.
Similar Western components have been found in Russian equipment destroyed in Ukraine, but not all are subject to Western sanctions.
Link to FSB
The investigation found that two of the company’s customers have ties to the FSB, as shown in Russian public procurement data. One of his client companies publicly expressed his gratitude to his FSB for effective cooperation on its website.
Company representatives declined to comment on this information when contacted by journalists.
supply scheme
There have also been confirmed cases of exports of various optical and electronic equipment to Russia, either directly or through Finnish companies acting as intermediaries in the supply chain until the equipment reaches Russian buyers.
In particular, there is an example of supplying such equipment to Uzbekistan, which is considered to be one of the channels for the sale of non-sanctioned goods to Russia.
It is unclear what proportion of the sensitive equipment exported through these companies ended up in Russian military equipment. However, investigations show that at least nine Russian customers of these Finnish companies have ties to the FSB or Russia’s defense industrial complex.
Export of metal processed parts
In another case, a Finnish company exported metal processing equipment to Russia, but information about its Russian partners revealed that some of its customers were companies in the military-industrial complex involved in the production of reconnaissance drones and bombers. It turned out that it was included.
The companies contacted for comment declined to provide candid communication. Several representatives of the companies denied violating sanctions and agreed to speak off the record. They claimed that they had no information that their products had passed into the Russian military-industrial complex.
criminal case numbers
Journalists also discovered that at least four companies mentioned in the investigation were already involved in criminal cases.
Two of these companies were sanctioned by the United States in the fall of 2023 after parts they exported were found on Russian drones.
One of the companies is reportedly run by a French national who resides in Finland. According to preliminary information, he has already been arrested on suspicion of violating sanctions.
It is worth noting that Finland is providing defense and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine at the official level following the start of a full-scale military invasion by the Russian Federation.