Helping Russia manufacture weapons to kill Ukrainians: German companies declared international sponsors of war

The National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption (NAPC) has added 2 leading German manufacturers of precision machine tools - Spinner and DMG MORI - to the list of international sponsors of war, which threatens them with serious reputational losses at the global level. The reason is that these companies' machines continue to be held and purchased by Russia, despite the sanctions imposed.

The NACP itself told us about this. They noted that without these machines, Russia is unable to produce weapons and components for them.

"The website of Spinner's official distributor in Russia, SPINNER LLC, states that it is operating 'as usual'. From February 24, 2022, to June 31, 2023, nearly $15 million worth of SPINNER machines and components were imported to Russia. After the outbreak of a large-scale war, the volume of supplies of SPINNER equipment to Russia increased by 500%," the statement said.

It is noted that among the company's importers are enterprises of the Russian military-industrial complex. They:

• develop and manufacture components for Su and MiG aircraft;
• are already under sanctions - which, however, "does not prevent them from receiving new German machines."

At the same time, DMG MORI is represented on the Russian market through DMG Mori Rus LLC. This company operates a machine tool plant in Ulyanovsk. At the same time:

• At the end of February 2022, DMG MORI announced that it would cease all sales and service in Russia, as well as all production at its plant;
• however, in reality, the company "remains an active participant in the Russian market".

"In July and August 2022, DMG Mori Rus supplied machine tool components to a subsidiary of UDK-Saturn JSC, Saturn Instrumental Plant, which produces gas turbine engines for military aviation," the NACP said.

Earlier, the Agency added 14 importers of machine tools from the German manufacturer Spinner to the list of international sponsors of war. "The decision was made after receiving information about the delivery of a machine from the production facilities of the plant in Turkey of the German manufacturer Spinner for the Russian JSC "Sirovsky Mechanical Plant" (SMZ)," the NACP explained.

The machine has already been shipped from Turkey. It is expected that Russia will receive it at the end of September.

It is noted that the machine is used in Russia for the production of tank fragmentation shells. The Ukrainian side has already officially informed the German company that its machine will now be used to produce ammunition used by Russia to attack Ukraine.

Declaration of an international war sponsor - what does it mean?

Spinner and DMG MORI are not the first international companies to be included in the list. The list already includes Şişecam Group, Philip Morris International, JTI, Alibaba Group Holding Limited, Bacardi, Unilever, Raiffeisen Bank International, Auchan, Metro, Procter & Gamble, Bonduelle, Mondelez, Leroy Merlin, Xiaomi, Geely and many others.

The companies included in the list of international sponsors of war are included in the World-Check database. This does not threaten them with closure, but the database is used worldwide to identify and manage financial, regulatory, and reputational risks.

For example, earlier the American corporation Mondelez International faced a boycott in Europe after being included in the Ukrainian list of international war sponsors. The Scandinavian countries were the most active in joining it. After that, Mondelez even announced its intention to wind down its business in Russia. However, the boycott has not stopped, as the company still has no plans to completely withdraw from the Russian market.

However, all of these companies on the list are still operating in Ukraine, as the NACP does not have the authority to close international businesses or restrict their operations. But if the National Security and Defense Council imposes sanctions on these businesses, the situation may change.

As OBOZREVATEL previously reported, the NACP has also sent letters to companies included in the list of international sponsors of the war. The agency invites the heads of such companies to visit Ukraine and see the consequences of Russian aggression with their own eyes and discuss the withdrawal of business from the terrorist country of Russia.

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