Sights for an FSB supplier and micrometers for ‘Alabuga’ were re-exported to russia via Turkey

Turkey remains one of russia’s main transit hubs for sophisticated Western equipment and components used in weapons production, according to The Insider. It is via Turkey that russian defence factories import their most expensive equipment, whilst bulk shipments mainly pass through China.

As the publication has discovered, over the past two years, optical sights and measuring equipment for drone production have been supplied from Europe to russia via Turkey.

Turkey has refused to join sanctions against russia over the war, despite its support for Ukraine. Back in early 2023, the US threatened Turkish companies with punishment for circumventing sanctions, and also stressed that the situation was damaging bilateral relations.

Following this, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu stated that his country does not export goods to russia that could be used in military operations.

Ahead of the May 2023 elections, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan stated that, should he be re-elected, he would not support the West’s sanctions policy towards russia and its dictator Vladimir Putin.

Optical sights manufactured by the Czech company Meopta Optika were supplied to russia by the Turkish company Av Doga Av Ve Deniz Gerecleri. The buyer was the russian front company Alliance LLC, which has repeatedly been the subject of investigations by The Insider. For example, it was this very firm that, after the war began, imported 2,000 Czech Česká Zbrojovka hunting rifles and over a hundred Austrian Glock pistols into russia.

Similar products from the German firm Kilic Feintechnik GmbH and the Croatian firm Rusan-Mikron were purchased by the reseller Nord LLC – a long-standing supplier to the FSB. The Turkish exporter was listed as Algo Lojistik Limited Sirketi.

Micrometers, vernier calipers and callipers from the American firm Fowler were supplied via Turkey to the Alabuga Special Economic Zone, where the ‘Shahed’ drones are manufactured, which attack Ukraine on a daily basis.

Equipment essential for defence against drone attacks also entered russia via Turkey. High-precision oscilloscopes, cross-interference meters and sensors from the German firm Rohde & Schwarz GmbH & Co KG and the American firms Keysight Technologies and Ametek Advanced Measurement Tech. This equipment is used to develop and configure electronic warfare systems.

Rangefinders from well-known European manufacturers of optical instruments have also entered russia via Turkey – the German firms Lase Industrielle Lasertechnik GmbH and Zoller+Frohlich GmbH, the Swiss firm Leica Geosystems AG, the American-Japanese firm Omron Automotive Electronics Co. Ltd, and the Canadian firm Hermary Opto Electronics Inc.

This refers to equipment used in arms factories for measuring products and fine-tuning (precision adjustment) of machinery, as well as for quality control of manufactured parts.

Machine tools, welding machines and other metalworking equipment required by military factories are also being supplied to the aggressor country via Turkey. This includes, for example, German welding units, the Lap GmbH Laser Applikationen laser system for high-speed, high-precision cutting, welding, cladding and heat treatment, and computerised automatic machining centres.

Equipment for the production of microchips, used, for example, in the warheads of ballistic missiles, is also finding its way into russia via this route.

Another type of equipment imported into the russian federation via Turkey is not directly related to the defence industry, but is in high demand among fuel exporters. These are flow meters and level sensors, which make it possible to determine exactly how full a tanker or oil storage tank is. They are manufactured by well-known Western firms – Endress + Hauser, Krohne Ltd, Pietro Fiorentini S.P.A., Dinel S.R.O., and the Heinrichs Kobold Group.

Source: LIGA.net