The experimental Oleshnik missile that President Vladimir Putin launched into Ukraine last month was manufactured by a Russian company that still relies on advanced Western manufacturing equipment, according to an FT analysis.
Two of Russia’s top weapons engineering institutes, named by Ukrainian intelligence as developers of the Oreshnik missile, both advertised that they were recruiting workers skilled in metal processing systems manufactured by German and Japanese companies. are.
The Moscow Institute of Thermal Technology and Sozvezdiye job postings tracked by the Financial Times show how heavily the Kremlin’s war machine continues to rely on foreign technology that is subject to Western sanctions.
This trust is especially evident in the field of computer numerical control (CNC). Computer numerical control (CNC) is an essential technology in Oleshnik’s production, using computers to control tools, allowing the factory to quickly shape materials with high precision.
President Putin has signaled the use of ground-launched missiles in response to Ukraine’s allies allowing the use of advanced Western weapons. Analysts said the missile was based on the RS-26 Rubezhi, a nuclear-capable ballistic missile that has been tested but not deployed. against targets inside Russia.
“We have such products in stock, we have stocks of such systems ready for immediate use,” Putin said after the attack on the Dnipropetrovsk factory, once a secret Soviet rocket manufacturing facility. he warned.
MITT, one of the companies that Ukrainian intelligence said was involved in Oreshnik, is Russia’s lead agency for developing solid-fuel ballistic missiles. In an ad published in 2024, the company says it “complies with Fanuc, Siemens and Heidenhain systems.”
Fanuc is Japanese, but the other two companies are German. All three companies manufacture control systems for high-precision CNC machines.
The same three Western companies are also mentioned in an advertisement published by Sozvezdi, which lists “automatic control and communication systems” for military applications as one of its areas of expertise. Their post asks for “knowledge of CNC systems – Fanuc, Siemens, Heidenhain (sic).”
A video posted earlier this year by Titan Valikady, the third defense company involved in manufacturing Oreshnik, also shows a worker standing in front of a control unit bearing the Fanuc branding.
Russia has relied on foreign-made machine tools for many years, despite efforts to build domestic alternatives. The Kremlin buys large quantities of high-precision metalworking machinery from China, but continues to source the controls to operate them from the West.
In 2024, 8 Chinese companies exhibited 12 models of CNC devices at a major trade fair in Russia. According to an analysis by the Economic Security Council of Ukraine, 11 of the machines were equipped with controllers manufactured by Japanese or German companies.
“The development of Oleshnik shows how dependent Russia’s military-industrial complex remains on high-end Western equipment,” said Denis Futik, director general of the ESCU. Western governments should seek to stop this flow of goods, which we witnessed in Dnipro last month, directly contributing to Russia’s attacks on Ukrainian lives. ”
Job advertisements even show Heidenhain equipment being used by Stan, which is leading Russia’s efforts to build a domestic CNC production industry.
For allies in Kiev, stopping the flow of CNC controllers and machinery to Russia was a priority. CNC equipment and parts are on the so-called “common priority list” of items that the Russian government specifically wants to reject.
“If we can restrict access to these Western CNC controls, we might be able to slow down production in Russia,” said Nick Pinkston, chief executive of industrial parts company Volition and an expert on automated tools. said.
“Some of these high-end control systems can cut faster while maintaining accuracy. Also, if you need to switch to a new control system, you can reconfigure the machine’s physical hardware and tooling. Not only that, but all parts have to be completely reprogrammed, which is time-consuming, expensive, and can reduce the quality of the parts.”
Export restrictions have slowed the flow of these goods into Russia, but an FT analysis of Russian declarations shows that at least $3 million worth of shipments containing Heidenhain parts have entered Russia since early 2024. It is suggested that there is an influx. Some of the buyers have deep ties to the military. production.
One of the shipments was listed for a system containing a new Heidenhain TNC640 control unit, listed as being produced in 2023. According to Heidenhain’s website, the TNC640 “defines the high-end range of control technology in its field” and “enables” combined milling, turning and grinding operations. ”
Priced at $345,000, the equipment was shipped to Baltic Industrial Company via China. Baltic Industrial Company is a Russian company with a history of supplying CNC machines to the defense industry and is under sanctions from the United States.
Diana Karedina, head of Baltic Industrial Company, was arrested on suspicion of fraud in military contracts during Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. She was accused of importing CNC machines from China and passing them off as Russian-made in order to receive funding.
The case against Karedina was dropped in late 2022 after the ombudsman ruled that her prosecution was “of vital economic importance” and “could cause undue harm to Russia’s machine tool industry.”
Heidenhain and Baltic did not respond to requests for comment.
Siemens said it “will not compromise on compliance (with sanctions)” and will “investigate any signs of evasion.” . . and involve the necessary relevant authorities. ”
Fanuc acknowledged that the machine photographed at Titan Barricadi appeared to be theirs, but noted that it appeared to be old.
They said they had “strengthened vigilance and controls in the export control process to prevent the possibility of technology and equipment being diverted to Russian companies.”
Missile illustration by Cleve Jones
