Tuesday, April 23, 2024 10:00:34 AM
China has drastically cut its direct shipments of equipment to Russia, including machinery, components, and electrical gear, in response to threats of new sanctions from Western countries, reports the Russian news agency RBC.
According to information from Chinese customs, in March this year, China’s exports of these categories of goods to Russia plummeted by 15% compared with the same period last year, amounting to $2.9 billion. China’s total exports to Russia also declined by 14.2% year-on-year. This downturn affects what is seen as a critically important export segment for Russia, given Moscow’s inability to make such purchases from Western countries any longer.
Analysts note that Russia’s share in China’s exports has decreased by 25%, underscoring a significant deterioration in the trajectory of Chinese supplies specifically to Russia.
Experts link this shift in China’s behavior to threats from Washington. In December last year, the United States announced the potential imposition of secondary sanctions targeting banks and financial institutions facilitating transactions for purchasing equipment for military-industrial purposes.
The news has sparked serious discussions among Russian experts and analysts, who are expressing concerns about potential implications for the Russian economy and its reliance on Chinese supplies.
(C)UAWIRE 2024
So, China continues to balance between the US and Russia. For Ukraine, that’s actually good news. Much better than full blown support for Putin. 🤨
Mr. Xi, China’s future is better aligned with the West, than with Muscovy and Putin. “Russia” is a spoiler for all. If all moral nations boycotted them, they would fail magnificently. Do the right thing.
Speaking of failing magnificently. The following is copied from ISW.
The Russian state “Sudoplatov” volunteer drone initiative is reportedly equipping Russian military personnel operating in the Bakhmut direction with cheap and defective first-person view (FPV) drones. A Russian milblogger (who has previously fought in occupied Ukraine) summarized feedback from Russian servicemen who received training and drones as part of the Sudoplatov drone initiative.[54] The milblogger observed that Sudoplatov drone operators undergo “primitive” training near the active frontline and implied that Russian forces lack motivation to make use of available simulators to learn how to operate FPV drones. The milblogger reiterated that Sudoplatov drones operate on one wavelength, which makes them vulnerable to Ukrainian electronic warfare (EW) systems. The milblogger also claimed that Russian manufacturers use cheap components to produce Sudoplatov drones, resulting in many defects and causing nearly one third of drones simply to fall to the ground after launch. The milblogger added that the battlefield effectiveness of these drones has sharply declined since fall 2023 after Ukrainian forces adapted to repelling these drones and noted that Russian forces need to launch many Sudoplatov drones in order to reach one target.
The milblogger observed that Russian military command’s poor understanding of technology is degrading Russian forces’ ability to effectively operate small attack drones in the Bakhmut direction.[55] The milblogger claimed that the Russian military command has developed several misunderstandings about drone operations, resulting in the command ordering drone operators to carry out impractical tasks. The milblogger claimed that the Russian military command often appoints drone operators who lack proper motivation and necessary technical literacy and observed that there are no systemic mechanisms that would improve coordination between Russian EW and drone units. The milblogger added that Russian drone operators are unable to directly support ground assault groups due to the lack of coordination and that the Russian military command has excessively formalized drone operations.
https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-april-22-2024