Workers pour molten steel into a mold at a foundry at the mechanical casting plant in Berdyansk in the Zaporizhzhia region in an area under Russian military control, southeastern Ukraine. This photo was taken during a trip organized by the Russian Ministry of Defense. (AP Photo)
The horrors of Putin’s assault on Ukraine aren’t limited to the battlefield. There’s also the matter of Russia’s wholesale theft of Ukrainian grain, steel and almost anything else they can sell for hard cash.
Perhaps this piracy was part of Putin’s original plan. Or perhaps it’s an ad hoc attempt to squeeze some benefit out of his disastrous misadventure. In any event, America must now take this criminal tactic into account in its strategic military planning.
The Biden administration’s National Security Strategy (NSS) was originally expected to be finalized late last year. That deadline slipped. Then came Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which apparently triggered a rewrite. The revised strategy is now expected to be released in the next few weeks.
The document must address Putin’s piracy tactic, which has sparked fears of widespread. engineered famine. The economic impact is already being felt worldwide.
A July report from the Initiative for the Study of Russian Piracy (ISRP) revealed the true scope and scale of Russia’s ongoing theft of Ukrainian steel and grain. It documented nearly 50 discreet thefts, totaling more than half a million metric tons of grain and 11,000 metric tons of steel. Since then, the number of thefts has ballooned to well over 100.
These thefts cripple Ukraine’s already weakened economy. And, when Russia sells these looted assets, worth hundreds of millions of dollars, the proceeds are used to bolster the Moscow’s war efforts.
In late August, ISRP received new intelligence that Russia had begun dismantling specialized equipment at the Avozstal and Illich factories in Mariupol – a fact that a senior adviser to the Mayor of Mariupol has confirmed. This equipment will likely be taken to Russia to produce semi-finished steel products that may be used in the war effort or to be sold to other countries.
The European Union has banned imports of Russian finished steel products and imposed sanctions to prevent Russia from acquiring the specialized equipment needed to produce semi-finished steel products. The stolen equipment from Ukraine will enable Moscow to circumvent this ban unless the EU acts to bar them from also selling semi-finished products.
The theft of Ukrainian assets and equipment gives Russia a significant new source of income and steel assets, allowing Moscow to extend the war. The threat Russia poses to Ukraine, Europe and the world will continue to grow until they are cut off from the European market completely and their piracy is exposed, condemned, and put to a halt.
Ukraine is one of the major sources of grain for the world. The theft and manipulation of Ukrainian harvests, while less a direct moneymaker than steel, gives Putin great power to threaten the lives and wellbeing of millions of innocent people. Like his cynical use of Russia’s energy assets to threaten and bully Europe, he now can pressure the numerous nations that depend on Ukrainian grains (particularly wheat) for a stable source of food. This, too, must be thwarted.
What can the U.S. and its allies do, above and beyond what they’re already doing? Since Putin’s piracy is specifically aimed at working a way “around” the sanctions, a direct response is needed. ISRP’s lead spokesperson, former Undersecretary of State James K. Glassman, recently called for a complete and total ban of all Russian steel products.
“What would really help,” Glassman said, “is a full-on ban of all Russian steel products, not just by the EU, but by countries such as Turkey. By purchasing Russian steel, these nations are aiding in Russia’s war on Ukraine – and prolonging the terrible suffering. Now, with Russia likely to be making that steel with Ukrainian equipment, the shame and complicity are compounded.”
Likewise, the West must stop paying for Russian shipments of Ukrainian grain and should begin to explore their own bans and sanctions to expose, punish and hamstring perpetrators of this theft in Russia. Sanctions handed down from the U.S. State Department in September were a critical step in holding Russian officials and organizations accountable for their actions against Ukraine. The department should go a step further and begin to identify and target those involved in the looting and transshipment of grain, steel, and other Ukrainian assets for the impact to be felt by the Russian state.
The West must also do everything it can to break the Russian embargo against grain exports by Ukraine. If it gains no advantage by its thefts, Russia’s motivation will be removed. This will also keep hungry populations around the world in a better place.
It is time to send Putin’s pirate ship to Davy Jones’ locker.
Steven P. Bucci is a visiting fellow in The Heritage Foundation’s Allison Center for Foreign Policy Studies.
