"The Americans will flog themselves"

As soon as Russia and China blocked another resolution on Syria in the UN Security Council, there was an immediate response from the United States - Congress almost unanimously voted to ban the Pentagon from cooperating with Russian Rosoboronexport. The official reason was the supply of Russian weapons to Syria. The decision of the congressmen will still be coordinated with the Senate. The Russian Foreign Ministry directly links these sanctions with Russia’s position on Syria in the UN Security Council. PublicPost learned from experts how a ban on contracts with a Russian company would affect the Pentagon and Rosoboronexport.

Now the Pentagon and Rosoboronexport, against which the United States had already imposed sanctions for the supply of weapons to Iran and Syria in 2006-2008 (in 2010, sanctions against Rosoboronexport were lifted by the Barack Obama administration), are cooperating on the supply of military vehicles to Afghanistan. In May 2011, Rosoboronexport and the Pentagon signed a contract worth $367.5 million for the supply of 21 MI-17 military transport helicopters. The contract was executed by Rosoboronexport and paid for by the US Department of Defense. In early July, the Pentagon entered into a second contract with a Russian company for the supply of ten more MI-17 helicopters worth $171 million. Russia assumed obligations to supply helicopters with certified spare parts and provide service.

If the sanctions are approved by the US Senate, the second contract will be canceled. In addition, Rosoboronexport and the Pentagon agreed on the supply of ammunition for the armed forces of Afghanistan. So, American congressmen decided to punish Russia for defense deals with Syria, the volume of which reaches about one billion dollars a year.

The initiative of the Congress will not affect Rosoboronexport in any way, says Igor Korotchenko, editor-in-chief of the National Defense magazine, director of the Center for Analysis of World Arms Trade, and a retired colonel of the General Staff. Russian-made helicopters are a sought-after product on the world market. “The Pentagon won’t buy it; there are a lot of people who want to buy these machines. This is primarily due to the fact that the MI-17 is a reliable, highly functional, efficient military transport helicopter. Dozens of countries around the world annually purchase these types of machines. Therefore, it is in our interests this is absolutely not critical,” he told PublicPost.

According to the expert, the ban will affect the positions of the Pentagon and the United States as a whole. “The Americans will flog themselves, because these helicopters are not intended for the Pentagon, but for Afghanistan, for the government forces of this country. Considering that the Americans and NATO members are going to leave there in the very near future, the question of the combat capabilities of the Afghan national armed forces, which are under control of President Karzai, becomes of paramount importance. Consequently, they will lose 10 very highly effective reliable helicopters, their ability to respond to certain crisis situations inside Afghanistan will be seriously undermined. The Americans will run into their own resolution," says Korotchenko. It will not be possible to find an equivalent replacement for the MI-17 helicopter on the world market, which is adapted to the operating conditions in the hot, desert, mountainous climate of Afghanistan; there are no alternatives. “Western technology cannot withstand such conditions - it either fails or breaks down. But the MI-17 helicopter, like a Kalashnikov assault rifle, can be operated in the most unfavorable conditions, and it will fly reliably,” he adds. As for the supply of ammunition, in which Rosoboronexport could participate, a replacement can be found. There are quite a lot of similar industries in Ukraine.

Experts have no doubt that sanctions against Russia will be adopted, but the Senate expects a rather tough fight on this issue. “The Pentagon is extremely uninterested in the adoption of this law. Afghanistan is now priority number one. The United States needs to somehow organize the process of withdrawal of the main forces in Afghanistan and exit from the current format of presence,” says Fedor, editor-in-chief of the magazine “Russia in Global Affairs.” Lukyanov. To do this, the United States needs to increase the combat capability of the Afghan police and army. In addition, Afghans are accustomed to Russian technology. Congressional political gestures are now extremely ill-timed for the Pentagon. Therefore, Lukyanov is sure that the US Department of Defense will make lobbying efforts so that senators do not agree on sanctions.

In response to military cooperation with Syria, the United States may impose sanctions against other Russian companies, the expert does not rule out. “The United States proceeds from the fact that its internal laws are extraterritorial and must apply throughout the world. But the current decision, I think, is the loudest because it touches on a very important issue. Afghanistan is now extremely important for the Americans. This is perhaps the core of what exists between Russia and the United States at the moment,” believes Fyodor Lukyanov.