Russia is facing the risk of losing the largest market for cartridges

Russian manufacturers of ammunition for civilian weapons can significantly reduce their presence in their largest EXPORT market - the US. The reason is additional US sanctions due to accusations against Russia of involvement in the poisoning of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

On August 20, the US authorities announced the introduction of the second round of sanctions against Russia under the US Chemical and Biological Weapons Control Act (CBW Act). These sanctions came into effect on 7 September. They restrict US "permanent imports" of small arms and ammunition from Russia by denying US importers new import licenses for these products.

The sanctions are formally in effect for a year, but in fact it could be much longer - in order to lift them , the US president must assure Congress that Russia has renounced the use of chemical weapons and will compensate Navalny for the damage.

How many cartridges Russia sells in the US

The annual supply of cartridges (loaded with bullets) by Russian manufacturers to the United States exceeds $100 million (equivalent to more than 7.2 billion rubles), follows from the public database of the US Census Bureau (which is an analogue of Rosstat). In August, imports of Russian cartridges jumped to almost $28 million, up from less than $0.7 million a month earlier, according to a recent update of US statistics. The corresponding Russian statistics are classified.