German authorities have uncovered a major sanctions-evasion network that illegally supplied Western technology to Russia’s military industry.
According to Politico, citing German investigative materials, the network operated through intermediary companies in Germany, Central Asia, and the Caucasus to smuggle sanctioned dual-use goods into Russia.
The main suspect is 39-year-old businessman Mykyta S., who was arrested by German police in Lübeck near the Radisson Blu Senator Hotel following a years-long investigation.
Investigators say he coordinated a logistics network that enabled Russia’s defense industry to acquire Western electronics and industrial equipment despite international sanctions.
The investigation found that the Lübeck-based company Global Trade initially operated as a regular trading intermediary with Russia. However, after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the company allegedly became a procurement hub for Russian clients.
In late March 2022, Mykyta S. took over the company and, according to prosecutors, became the key link between the German firm and Russian coordinators.
German investigators believe the network was actually controlled by the Russian company Kolovrat, also known as Siderius. The United States has already imposed sanctions on the company over its activities in Russia’s manufacturing sector.
According to investigators, Kolovrat employees gained access to Global Trade’s email accounts and posed as German managers during negotiations with European suppliers.
The network purchased microcontrollers, sensors, electronic components, oscilloscopes, converters, bearings, and other dual-use goods. Some of the products were later found in organizations linked to Russia’s defense and nuclear industries. Investigators specifically identified deliveries of equipment to the All-Russian Scientific Research Institute of Automation (VNIIA), which is involved in Russia’s nuclear program.
To circumvent sanctions, the network used a complex transit system through third countries. Goods were first shipped to Turkey, Kazakhstan, Armenia, or Serbia before being forwarded to Russia. Investigators identified the Turkish company MR Global as one of the key transit entities officially listed as the cargo recipient.
The scheme also involved German shell companies ER Industriebedarf GmbH and Amtech Solutions. ER Industriebedarf was formally headed by Russian citizen Yevgeny R., while Amtech Solutions was established in 2025 by Daniel A. on the instructions of Mykyta S. Investigators believe these companies were used to conceal the final recipients of the goods and to prepare fraudulent documentation.
Investigators found that the network carried out around 16,000 shipments with a total value exceeding €30 million. According to Germany’s Federal Intelligence Service (BND), some of the goods may have been used in military programs, including equipment for water desalination systems used on nuclear submarines.
Militarnyi previously reported that Sweden’s Security Service detained two men suspected of supplying Russia with advanced engineering equipment for use in the war against Ukraine.
