The Russian version of Iran’s Shahed kamikaze drones contains mostly foreign-made components, raising questions about the effectiveness of export controls to Russia, the British Conflict Armament Research (CAR) research group, which investigates the use of weapons in conflict, reported on its website.
The group identified more than 100 parts, branded by 22 different companies from seven countries, including Russia. Most of these companies are based in China, Switzerland and the United States.
About a third of the components were produced between 2020 and 2023, with some after the start of the war against Ukraine, and all three Russian components produced between January and March 2023.