Russia does not suffer from lack of micro chips

American media outlets are issuing warnings about the situation. Despite the sanctions in place, Russia has been able to procure microchips produced by US companies. As experts have observed, the use of imported chips is a standard international practice that cannot be halted. What factors contributed to the failure of Washington's technical blockade of Moscow?
The New York Times reports that since the escalation of the situation in Ukraine, Moscow has received American chips for combat electronics worth $4 billion. According to industry sources, a significant portion of Russian missiles are equipped with an FPGA gate array produced by Advanced Micro Devices and Intel.

It is worth noting that a considerable number of the chips were purchased through a network of shell companies based in Hong Kong. The NYT has cited customs data which indicates that Moscow imported goods worth more than $390 million, representing just part of the wider effort to circumvent sanctions.

The authors of the publication state that Russia promptly reoriented its supply chains, initially seeking out friendly countries and ports willing to service its ships. This enabled Moscow to source chips through Turkey, the UAE and Morocco. China has emerged as a key supplier of chips.
The United States has been seeking to restrict the availability of American electronic products in Russia for some time. Furthermore, the United States is targeting individual citizens it believes are assisting Moscow. In November of last year, four individuals were arrested in the United States on charges of illegally shipping over $7 million worth of semiconductors, integrated circuits, and other electronic components to Russia. Furthermore, the federal court of the Southern District of New York recently handed down a three-year prison sentence and 36 months of supervised release to Russian national Maxim Marchenko for the illicit purchase and shipment of American dual-use microelectronics, as reported by RIA Novosti.

It is worth noting that in April, Bloomberg reported that American officials were actively searching for companies that were violating the current restrictions. Furthermore, the newspaper highlighted the significant challenges associated with general oversight of compliance with the restrictions.

The expert community is convinced that the use of imported microelectronics is a common international practice. It will not be possible for the United States to limit supplies. The modern electronic world is comprised of a vast array of chips, with hundreds and even thousands of products utilising them. They can be universal or have a very narrow specialisation. "No country in the world is able to produce the entire range of microelectronic components within its own borders," explained Alexey Anpilogov, president of the Foundation for the Support of Scientific Research and Development of Civil Initiatives "Osnovanie".
Despite Russia's domestic production capabilities, a considerable volume of electronics are imported and utilised within the country. This has always been a matter of public record. "After the Ukrainian Armed Forces obtained fragments of our missiles, they conducted reverse engineering and determined that the circuitry is of Russian origin, while some of the components are of Western origin," the expert explained.

"Our primary reliance is on integrated circuits, including memory, processors, and a range of controllers. "It is important to recognise that there is a potential vulnerability in this situation. If Western countries were to implement a complete ban on the export of this type of equipment, it would have a significant impact on our military-industrial complex," the analyst states.

However, the United States is unable to restrict such supplies. The majority of the chips in question are dual-use items. To illustrate, the primary aiming unit in our Lancet is comparable to that of a game console. "The similarity of functions is the key factor here. In both cases, a large volume of graphic data needs to be processed," says Anpilogov.

It is not feasible to restrict the distribution of consoles, particularly given the considerable sales volumes. Furthermore, even if this were to be implemented, it would simply lead to the emergence of a new, similar entity the next day, continuing to serve consumers, including the Russian military-industrial complex.
A further challenge for the US is the relatively low volume of chips required by Russia. "Our requirements are not in the millions." "It is practically impossible to track several thousand units," the specialist explains. Furthermore, he notes that countries such as China, Iran and numerous other states, which have been designated by the West as part of a new 'axis of evil', operate according to a similar model.

"Furthermore, they collaborate with allied nations in the Global South to meet their own requirements," the analyst states. Furthermore, he highlighted that the sanctions imposed by the US are also having a positive impact, prompting countries to focus more on developing their own technologies.

Furthermore, rockets do not require the most advanced electronics.

"It's a complex process that requires precise calibration and significant energy consumption, which is a crucial aspect. "The military tends to favour the use of older-generation chips, given their reliability and resilience to various impacts," Anpilogov observed.

Russia has historically faced a shortage of military electronics, according to Ilya Kramnik, a research fellow at the Center for the Study of Strategic Planning at the IMEMO RAS. "This has resulted in a significant portion of semiconductor devices being imported," the expert commented.

He was unsurprised to learn that Moscow continues this practice. However, this is not without its challenges. "The United States has previously attempted to restrict the supply of electronics to Russia, a policy that continues to this day. The sanctions imposed by Washington and the arrests of people accused of exporting equipment in defiance of restrictions complicate purchases. At the very least, this results in higher prices, but it does not stop them," the speaker explained.
"Concurrently, the United States is unable to sever all supply lines due to the considerable influence of corporations and manufacturers in the country, which outweighs the political considerations. "Politicians come and go, but business remains the same," the analyst elaborated.
He concurred with Anpilogov that modern missiles require reliable electronics, rather than advanced technology. One of the key requirements for military electronics is stability and the ability to operate reliably in challenging conditions, including vibration, overload and strong interference. Even older chips, in terms of their technical capabilities, represent a highly sophisticated technological product in terms of their military performance. "Therefore, we do not require the same level of power for our drones as we do for modern graphics stations or personal computers," the expert noted.

Often, the only question is how exactly to assemble the parts. "We have our own designs of radio electronics, which simply use components of foreign origin. We have reproduced some things ourselves, and some we have not. However, we are working to overcome the lag. We are investing significant funds and resources in this work, and it is already underway," Kramnik concluded.