Russia seeks import substitution through sanctions, Russians are divided on war against Ukraine - ISW

In 2023, the aggressor country Russia is increasingly trying to develop import substitution solutions for the purchase of western-made precision machine tools. It is likely preparing for Western sanctions aimed at this vulnerability.

At the same time, polls show that about half of Russians support the war against Ukraine and Russia's alleged participation in "peace talks." This is stated in a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

Russia cannot meet the demand for precision machine tools

It is noted that in late spring, the Russian government approved the "Concept of Technological Development until 2030," which encourages domestic production of high-tech products such as precision machine tools and requires that by then enterprises produce at least 75% of such products in Russia.

In August 2023, Russian state defense conglomerate Rostec said that STAN Group (the country's largest precision machine tool manufacturer, which it acquired in 2019) is "an important element of the import substitution program."

On October 26, Semyon Yakubov, head of Rostec's subsidiary RT-Capital, said that Rostec hopes to use STAN to "meet Russia's huge need" for modern precision machine tools in the absence of Western imports. According to him, Western sanctions and the war against Ukraine have sharply increased Russia's military and civilian demand for domestically produced machine tools.

At the same time, he admitted that STAN was unable to meet even a third of the total volume of Russian orders for precision machine tools in 2023, amounting to about $67.1 million. He stated that Russia's demand for precision machine tools far exceeds its production capacity.

What do Russians think about the war?

On November 14, the Russian sociological organization Levada Center reported that two-thirds of Russian residents believe that their aggressor country is currently "moving in the right direction." And of those who believe the opposite, 45% referred to the war against Ukraine.

According to the so-called Russian opposition research organization Russian Field, 48% of Russians said that Russia should participate in "peace talks" and that 74% would support dictator Vladimir Putin if he signed such an agreement "tomorrow."

It is also noted that 36% of Russians allegedly believe that the war is "going well" for Russia, while 25% believe it is going badly for Russia. Those Russians who trust Telegram channels are twice as likely to believe that things are bad for Russia as those who rely on Russian television.

As OBOZ.UA reported, the occupiers complain that Russia no longer has anyone to mobilize for the war against Ukraine. According to them, those whom the Kremlin sent to the front line are serving in Moscow according to their documents.

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