Russia and China are using clever tactics to circumvent Western sanctions. They disguise copper as scrap and profit from trade tariffs.
In addition, the crushed metal is more difficult to trace. This is particularly explosive since the West has announced that it will stop trading with Russia Significantly restrict metal imports from Russia from April 15, 2024. The aim of these measures is to reduce Vladimir Putin's income, which he uses for his war against Ukraine. The UK has already passed a law banning the import of Russian metals in December 2023. British Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt said the ban on Russian metals on the two largest exchanges is intended to prevent "that the Kremlin will allow even more money to flow into its war machine." The U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the bans are intended to reduce the revenue "that Russia can generate to continue its brutal war against Ukrainians." The UK said the measures are intended "to reduce the income that the Kremlin can generate" from the war in Ukraine.