War in Ukraine: Putin, Shoigu, Peskov… despite sanctions, a French company would continue to equip the Russian regime’s planes

L'avion Iliouchine IL-96 de Vladimir Poutine au Kazakhstan le 9 novembre 2023. EPA/SPUTNIK POOL – PAVEL BEDNYAKOV/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN

Since the start of the war in Ukraine, international sanctions have been imposed on Russia. Despite this, a French company would equip the Russian plane with electronics.

Since February 2022, international sanctions, particularly economic, have been imposed on Russia since the start of its invasion of Ukraine. If imports or transactions are prohibited, a French company based in Châteauroux in Indre would continue to equip the planes of important members of the Russian regime with electronics, such as President Vladimir Putin, Dmitri Peskov and Sergei. Choïgu, reveal our colleagues from Parisien.

An embargo bypassed

The main culprit is the PGA company, located in Châteauroux in Indre. This is a French subsidiary of the American group Astronics, whose headquarters is based in New York State, details Le Parisien.

If Russia and French society work together, it is not for nothing. Moscow does not master certain cutting-edge technologies such as "the system managing from the cockpit all onboard electronics". This is why the Russians would resort to French subcontracting, in order to equip their fleet with Iliouchine-96 or Super-jet Sukhoï 100 aircraft.

Despite the sanctions imposed since the start of the war, a former executive linked to PGA, sailing between France and Russia, affirms that trade between PGA and Russia continues. The latter claims that 4 to 5 million euros of Russian money would even have been collected by the French company, for the equipment of several planes, underlines the daily.

The source explains that the electronic equipment is sent to Armenia to be assembled there, this is the official version. "By supervising the work remotely, the technicians from the avionics company in Châteauroux realize that their correspondents, and therefore the planes currently being transported, are in the process of being transported. be equipped, are in Moscow and not in Yerevan, assures the former executive. The leaders claim the planes are in Armenia! It makes everyone laugh", he explains.

To circumvent the Moscow embargo, an executive from the PGA company would transit the money through Dubai to the United Arab Emirates. But recently, departures of senior executives would mean that the authorities have meddled in the affairs of the Châteauroux firm, following multiple alerts launched to the government by the former employee.