Western sanctions force Russians to live without imports

Russian companies and individuals are resorting to smuggling to maintain production and consumption in the face of sanctions.

As the FT reports, One example is the cannibalization of cars, that is, taking them apart for replacement parts. It reports on an example of a Russian billionaire who was unable to buy a Mercedes because of sanctions and bought two Maybach cars instead - their importation is also suspended, but they managed to buy them. The two cars were bought to drive one of them and use the other to replace spare parts in case of breakdowns. The publication quotes the billionaire as saying that the profits from smuggling are so high that the importation of luxury goods in this way will always exist.

The FT also reports on the smuggling into Russia of electronics for schools - these are devices of one brand that has suspended its operations in the country. Another example is the Cheboksary Powertrain Plant, where, according to the FT, some production had to be stopped due to dependence on Western components and some had to be transferred to new forms of production. For example, the plant started producing its own chips for tractors, buying transistors and other parts for them in Asia, and replacing Japanese engines with Belarusian ones.