U.S.-led sanctions are forcing Russia to use computer chips from dishwashers and refrigerators in some military equipment, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said Wednesday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cWe have reports from Ukrainians that when they find Russian military equipment on the ground, it\u2019s filled with semiconductors that they took out of dishwashers and refrigerators,\u201d Raimondo told a\u00a0Senate hearing<\/a>, noting that she\u00a0recently met<\/a>\u00a0with Ukraine\u2019s prime minister.<\/p>\n U.S. technology exports to Russia have fallen by nearly 70 percent since sanctions began in late February, according to Raimondo, whose department oversees the export controls that form a big part of the sanctions package. Three dozen other countries have adopted similar export bans, which also apply to Belarus.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cOur approach was to deny Russia technology \u2014 technology that would cripple their ability to continue a military operation. And that is exactly what we are doing,\u201d she said in a response to a question from Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) about the impact of the export controls.<\/p>\n The semiconductor anecdote came from Ukrainian officials, who told the secretary that when they opened up captured Russian tanks, they found parts from refrigerators and commercial and industrial machinery that appear to make up for other unavailable components, Commerce Department spokeswoman Robyn Patterson said.<\/p>\n The number of U.S. shipments to Russia including items subject to the new rules \u2014 semiconductors, telecommunications equipment, lasers, avionics and maritime technology \u2014 has decreased 85 percent and their value has decreased 97 percent, compared with the same time period in 2021, Patterson said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n In her Senate remarks, Raimondo also pointed to recent reports that two Russian tank manufacturers have had to idle production because of a lack of components. The White House, too, has previously highlighted<\/a>\u00a0those reports, saying Uralvagonzavod and Chelyabinsk Tractor Plant have halted production.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Computer chips<\/a>, also known as semiconductors,\u00a0are the brains<\/a>\u00a0that operate most modern electronics, from appliances to fighter jets. Russia manufactures few of its own chips, historically relying on imports from Asian and Western companies.<\/p>\n The world\u2019s biggest computer chip companies\u00a0began cutting off\u00a0<\/a>deliveries to Russia in late February, after the U.S.-led restrictions kicked in.<\/p>\n The United States and other Western nations already had regulated sales to Russia of chips and other electronic components specifically designed for military use. Those sales required a government license to proceed even before Russia\u2019s recent invasion of Ukraine.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The new rules tightened those restrictions and also blocked the sale of most dual-use chips, which have both military and commercial applications, to nonmilitary users in Russia, including those in high-tech industries.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The Biden administration said the ban would cut off more than half of Russia\u2019s high-tech imports and kneecap the country\u2019s ability to diversify its economy and support its military. The ban was not designed to block deliveries of consumer electronics.<\/p>\n In a\u00a0novel move<\/a>\u00a0that the United States has used only once before \u2014 against\u00a0China\u2019s Huawei<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 it is also requiring companies worldwide to abide by the rules and block such sales to Russia if they use U.S. manufacturing equipment or software to produce chips. Most chip factories around the world use software or equipment designed in the United States, analysts say.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Previous research has shown Russia\u2019s military has long relied on Western electronics. Russian military drones shot down over Ukraine in recent years have been\u00a0full of Western electronics<\/a>\u00a0and components, according to investigators from the London-based\u00a0Conflict Armament Research<\/a>\u00a0group, which dissected the drones.<\/p>\n \n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n