In an article posted yesterday, the New York Times exposes that, despite massive U.S. sanctions, Russian war production has increased to levels above what they were at the beginning of the special military operation in February of 2022. “Today, Russian officials have remade their economy to focus on defense production. With revenue from high energy prices, Russia’s security services and ministry of defense have been able to smuggle in the microelectronics and other Western materials required for cruise missiles and other precision guided weaponry. As a result, military production has not only recovered but surged,” the Times says. It names Armenia and Türkiye as two “pass through” countries Russia has been able to use to “subvert” U.S. export controls.
Buried in the middle of the article is this gem: “Western officials also believe Russia is on track to manufacture two million artillery shells a year—double the amount Western intelligence services had initially estimated Russia could manufacture before the war.” Further, the Times cites an Estonian Defense Ministry official saying that Russia is producing artillery shells at a rate that is seven times that of NATO combined.
