Russia Sidesteps 2022 Sanctions, Building Support Across a Dozen Countries
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jul 22
Russia Sidesteps 2022 Sanctions, Building Support Across a Dozen Countries
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jul 22
Summary
Russia has stayed afloat despite becoming the world’s most sanctioned country after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, expanding ties across the non-Western world instead of yielding to Western pressure.
Dubai emerged as a key hub for that adaptation, helping Russian elites relocate businesses, traders import Chinese goods, banks settle nondollar payments and shadow tankers move oil to Asian buyers.
About 600 miles east of Moscow, the Alabuga Special Economic Zone assembles Iranian-origin drones for use in Ukraine, while recruiters have targeted young African women with false promises to staff the operation.
At the United Nations and through BRICS events in 2024, Russian diplomats also courted non-Western governments, reinforcing Moscow’s message that estrangement from Europe has not translated into global isolation.
With BRICS now bypassing SWIFT, is the era of the US dollar's financial dominance officially over?
Are recent gasoline shortages a sign that Russia's war economy is finally beginning to crack from within?
How is a Russian video game recruiting drone operators for a factory that exploits African women?
Russia’s Sanctions Evasion Machine: Shadow Fleets, Crypto Laundering, and the Global Struggle to Enforce Restrictions
Overview
Russia has built a sophisticated system to evade Western sanctions, using high-volume and fast-moving trade routes that are hard to track. After the war in Ukraine and new sanctions, Russia shifted its oil exports to Asia, with China becoming a key economic partner and India buying Russian oil. To bypass restrictions, Russia relies on a shadow fleet of tankers and explores new land trade corridors. These strategies help Russia keep its economy running and fund ongoing conflicts, but they also force Western countries to develop advanced monitoring and enforcement methods to keep up with Russia’s evolving tactics.