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How a Russian middleman used cryptocurrency to procure drone parts and avoid US sanctions

Updated April 1, 2024 at 12:08 a.m. ET
A self-proclaimed Russian trafficker in China received a request from the manufacturer of the legendary AK-47 rifle. Russia’s largest small arms manufacturer, Kalashnikov Concern, needed electrical parts for drones that have been among the the most effective weapons against Ukrainian armored vehicles.
The smuggler, Andrey Zverev, brought the order in late 2022 to a Hong Kong electronics distributor. tried to end such agreementsand even Chinese banks, wary of sanctions, blocked payments from Russia.
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