People visit an exhibition of destroyed Russian military vehicles and weapons at Mykhailivska Square in Kyiv, Ukraine, on July 23 2022. File photo.More than 450 foreign-made components have been found in Russian weapons recovered in Ukraine, evidence that Moscow acquired critical technology from companies in the US, Europe and Asia in the years before the invasion, according to a new report by the Royal United Services Institute defence think tank.
About two-thirds of the components were manufactured by US-based companies, Rusi found, based on the weapons recovered from Ukraine. Products manufactured by US-based Analog Devices and Texas Instruments accounted for nearly a quarter of all the Western components in the weapons. While many of the foreign components are found in household goods such as microwaves that are not subject to export controls, Rusi said a strengthening of export restrictions and enforcement could make it harder for Russia to replenish its arsenal of weapons.