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- They put it on the wing: the United States holds $500 million worth of aircraft parts purchased by the Russian Federation.
They put it on the wing: the United States holds $500 million worth of aircraft parts purchased by the Russian Federation.
The United States holds $500 million worth of aircraft parts purchased by Russia, and Moscow is interested in unblocking their supplies, Russian Industry and Trade Minister Anton Alikhanov told Izvestia. The Russian Federation is also ready to work out the issue of recognizing the repairs of Airbus and Boeing aircraft carried out under sanctions. At the same time, Russia is developing its own aviation industry in order not to depend on Western spare parts.: The government has allocated more than 770 billion rubles for the development program of this industry until 2030. Whether the issue of "aviation" sanctions will become part of the Russian-American negotiations is in the Izvestia article.
Russia is interested in unblocking the supply of spare parts from the United States
The United States holds half a million dollars worth of aircraft spare parts purchased by Russia, and the Russian Federation is interested in unblocking the supply of these parts, Anton Alikhanov, Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation, told Izvestia.
— We have about $500 million worth of suspended spare parts in the USA for the needs of our aircraft industry, which have already been paid for. Therefore, I think that we, as representatives of consumers, would be interested in unblocking the supply of these spare parts. That would be important," Anton Alikhanov told Izvestia.
In addition, Moscow sees reason in recognizing the repair work carried out by Russian companies with Airbus and Boeing aircraft under sanctions without appropriate verification of licenses from foreign manufacturers, the head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade told Izvestia.
— We will already work out a number of issues if such a move is in our interests. For example, the recognition of repairs carried out on foreign aircraft, I mean Airbus and Boeing, which are manufactured by Russian companies, respectively, under sanctions without appropriate verification of licenses from foreign manufacturers. This is also a subject of our interest," Anton Alikhanov summed up.
The Boeing corporation is headquartered in Virginia, but companies from Japan, South Korea, France, Sweden, Germany and Italy are also involved in the production of the aircraft. Airbus was created as a consortium of European companies to compete with Boeing and other American giants. Airbus is headquartered in the Netherlands and operates factories in France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom. In addition, the company has branches in Canada, India and Malaysia.
Izvestia appealed to the US Department of Commerce and the US Department of the Treasury with a request to clarify which aircraft parts are currently being held by the United States.
Avionics components are extremely important for the Russian aviation industry, which can only be repaired by their manufacturer. For example, the aircraft collision warning system (TCAS), which is mainly manufactured and repaired only by the American company Honeywell. The so—called consumables are also important - spare parts that are most often used in aircraft operation: brake discs, tires, engine parts, Andrey Patrakov, founder of the flight safety and certification service RunAvia, told Izvestia.
The list of spare parts held by the United States most likely also includes equipment needed for the aviation industry. For example, one high-precision machine can cost $10-30 million, the editor-in-chief of the portal told Izvestia. Avia.ru Roman Gusarov.
The request for verification of the repair of foreign aircraft, which was carried out by Russian companies, also has grounds. During operation, not only spare parts from manufacturers can be used, but also certified parts from third-party suppliers.
— Even some of our enterprises have mastered the range of spare parts for foreign airliners. They are certified by the Federal Air Transport Agency. She also monitors the maintenance of the airworthiness of foreign aircraft," said Roman Gusarov.
There have already been precedents when foreign policy factors led to the termination of cooperation. For example, after the operation to force Georgia to peace in 2008, Pratt& Whitney Canada refused to cooperate with Russia on the Mi-38 helicopter program, Oleg Panteleev, executive director of the Aviport agency, aviation expert, reminded Izvestia.
The United States and the EU, together with Japan, used to block the transfer of aircraft parts for Russian aircraft even before 2022, when supplies of components for the composite "black wing" of the MC-21 aircraft were closed, Mikhail Mironyuk, associate professor at the HSE Department of Policy and Management, told Izvestia.
Sanctions against the Russian aviation industry
After the start of its operation, Western countries introduced large-scale restrictions against the Russian aviation industry. In particular, the United States and the EU have closed their airspace to Russian aircraft, making exceptions only for humanitarian and search-and-rescue flights. Russia responded in kind, closing the skies to flights from 36 countries, including the entire European Union and Canada.
In addition, the US Department of Commerce has imposed restrictions on the export and re-export of goods for Russian airlines Aeroflot, Azur Air and Utair. In June 2022, the United States stripped Nordwind Airlines, Pobeda and S7 of their export privileges, and at the end of May, Russia. In May 2023, similar measures were taken with respect to Smartavia. The restrictions imposed by Washington prohibit the export and re-export of components manufactured in the United States, including through intermediaries in third countries.
However, there is also experience in easing restrictions: in November 2022, the Office of Foreign Investment Control of the US Treasury issued a special license that allows "operations necessary for the supply, export or re-export of goods, technologies or services" for aircraft that are registered outside of Russia.
Recently, the topic of cooperation between the Russian Federation and the United States in this area has been actively discussed. American business in Russia is waiting for the lifting of "aviation" sanctions prohibiting aircraft maintenance and spare parts supplies, Robert Agee, head of the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia, said in early March.
In February, at a meeting in Istanbul, the Russian delegation invited their American colleagues to start a dialogue on resuming direct communication. The new Russian ambassador to the United States, Alexander Darchiev, said he plans to "deal in detail" with the resumption of flights between the United States and Russia. In addition, it is worth noting that American industrialists have gained interest in our components: imports of Russian aircraft parts reached a three-year high in November 2024.
Against the background of Western sanctions, Russia is developing its own aircraft production. The government has allocated more than 770 billion rubles for the aviation industry development program until 2030. Vladimir Putin has instructed to increase the share of Russian-made aircraft in the fleets of Russian companies to at least 50% by 2030.
The impact of the US and EU sanctions on the Russian aviation industry turned out to be multidimensional. The fleet of imported aircraft is aging, part of the fleet is grounded, repairs are being carried out, but this repair is unauthorized, and engine replacement is impossible (only repairs), Mikhail Mironyuk emphasized.
— And now projects that will fly are on the way. Not as big as planned, but they will fly. There will also be a re-motorization of the SSJ-100, there will be new sides (MS-21). The question is about the volume," the expert emphasized.
The "end of the world" did not come because of the sanctions, on the contrary, it was realized that the previous model of development was harmful, concluded Mironyuk.
Western sanctions are most painful for the supply of CFM-56 engines, which are used on the most massive aircraft of the Boeing B737 and Airbus A320 family. They are produced by CMF International, a joint venture between the United States and the EU. Even if the sanctions are lifted only by the United States, the EU ban does not allow the supply of spare parts for these engines, Andrei Patrakov said.
Negotiations between Russia and the United States
The issue of cooperation in the field of civil aviation may become a topic for negotiations between Russia and the United States. Earlier, Moscow and Washington began discussions on rare earth metals, Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund and special presidential representative for investment and economic cooperation with foreign countries, told Izvestia. However, Russia demonstrates high economic efficiency, so compromises on lifting restrictions in exchange for some concessions from the Russian Federation are hardly possible, says Vladimir Shapovalov, a political scientist and deputy director of the Institute of History and Politics at Moscow State University.
Against this background, new contacts between Russia and the United States are expected. According to NBC, Donald Trump plans to have another phone conversation with Vladimir Putin soon. In addition, a new round of consultations between Moscow and Washington on the settlement of the conflict in Ukraine may take place in Riyadh in mid-April, according to media reports.
US President Donald Trump
During the previous meeting, Russia and the United States agreed to ensure the safety of navigation in the Black Sea, not to use force and not to allow the use of commercial vessels for military purposes. In response, Washington has committed itself to helping restore access to the world market for Russian exports of agricultural products and fertilizers. This requires lifting sanctions against the Rosselkhoznadzor and other organizations involved in international food trade operations.
To launch this initiative, it is necessary that the EU agrees to lift sanctions against the Rosselkhoznadzor, as it decides to disconnect banks from the SWIFT system. Brussels has already refused to lift the restrictions, saying that the sanctions will remain in effect until "the complete and unconditional withdrawal of Russian troops from the territory of Ukraine." The United States has enough arguments to change Europe's position, but the question is whether Washington will apply them. So far, there are no signs that he will take such steps, Shapovalov noted.
With the advent of the Donald Trump administration, Russia and the United States have resumed dialogue on a wide range of issues. In particular, on February 12, the presidents of the two countries had their first telephone conversation since 2022. Then they talked on the phone again on March 18. Back in February, Moscow and Washington agreed to restore the staffing levels of diplomatic staff at the embassies of both countries. In addition, at the end of February, the parties held another round of negotiations in Istanbul. In Turkey, the delegations again discussed the restoration of normal operation of diplomatic missions. After that, by the way, the new Russian ambassador, Alexander Darchiev, went to Washington.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
