Moscow received $295.4 million (£230 million) of military hardware including bombs, rockets, missiles and guns despite a weapons embargo introduced by Brussels following the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014, an EU analysis shared with the Telegraph has revealed.

Earlier this month, the European Commission was forced to close a loophole in its blockade after it was revealed that at least 10 member states exported $377.7 million (£294 million) to Russia, Report informs via the Express.

It was unveiled that 78 percent of the companies involved in selling weapons to Russia were French and German.

It is highly likely that some of the weapons they sold are being used by Russian troops in the ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

German firms alone had sold $137.4 million (£107 million) of “dual-use” equipment, including rifles and special protection vehicles to Moscow.

Berlin defended its actions with reference to an ambiguity within the EU’s 2014 arms blockade.

France was found to have sent shipments worth $164.4 million (£128 million) to Russia, as part of 76 export licences.

Paris allowed exporters to complete contracts agreed before 2014, using a technicality in the EU embargo, the report revealed.

Along with bombs, rockets and torpedoes, French firms sent thermal imaging cameras for more than 1,000 Russian tanks as well as navigation systems for fighter jets and attack helicopters.

Following the start of the Russian invasion on February 24, the EU has introduced further restrictions on the export of dual-use items to Russia, closing the loophole.

However, it wasn’t until the fifth round of sanctions, described as the “most draconian ever”, that the exemption on previously agreed arms sales to Russia was scrapped.

The loophole, which eventually closed on April 8, was only shut after mounting protests from Baltic and eastern European EU member states.

https://report.az/en/other-countries/media-france-germany-armed-russia-with-295m-military-gear-before-ukraine-invasion/