Russia sanctions world's largest truck maker
The measures were announced in a government decree issued last week. Daimler Truck had been a strategic partner to KamAZ since 2008, holding a 15% stake and co-owning a joint venture that produced cab frames for heavy-duty vehicles.
The German company, which is the world's largest truck maker, became the 33rd entity added to Russia's sanctions list since May 2022 in response to Western restrictions imposed over the Ukraine conflict.
Under the sanctions, Russian individuals and entities are prohibited from conducting business with the listed companies, including fulfilling existing contracts or carrying out financial transactions that benefit them. However, the government may grant temporary exemptions for specific deals on a case-by-case basis.
In March 2022, following the escalation of hostilities in Ukraine, many German automakers, including Daimler Truck, suspended operations in Russia. While Daimler initially stopped short of a full market exit, the company eventually divested from local operations. The vacuum left by German manufacturers has since been filled largely by Chinese carmakers. Moscow has repeatedly denounced Western sanctions as unlawful and ineffective in isolating the Russian economy.
The company announced the suspension of its Russian operations three years ago. In February 2024, KamAZ CEO Sergey Kogogin confirmed that Daimler had sold its stake and had not participated in the company's activities since early 2022.
Daimler Truck is a key supplier to the German military, specifically through its Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks division, which provides a range of vehicles for military applications. A recent major order from the German armed forces (Bundeswehr) involves the supply of Mercedes-Benz Arocs logistics vehicles with all-wheel drive and special military equipment.
Moscow's sanctions come as German Chancellor Friedrich Merz adopts an increasingly hardline stance toward Russia. Since taking office, he has called for increased military support to Kiev and advocated allowing Ukraine to use long-range missiles without restrictions – including strikes deep into Russian territory.
The Kremlin has accused Berlin of escalating tensions and warned that such actions could draw Germany into a direct confrontation with Moscow.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Russia Today
an hour ago
- Russia Today
China boosting purchases of Russian metals
Beijing has increased purchases of Russian metals as Moscow pivots toward Asia amid Western sanctions, Bloomberg has reported, citing customs data. The US and its allies have been targeting Russian base metals in an effort to cut the country's revenues amid the Ukraine conflict. China has become a key buyer of Russian commodities, with overall trade between the two countries hitting historic highs last year, exceeding $240 billion. Imports of Russian aluminum jumped nearly 56% year-on-year to almost one million tons between January and May, while copper purchases surged 66% and nickel imports more than doubled, according to Trade Data Monitor, cited by the outlet on Monday. The report noted that while Russian producers Rusal and Norilsk Nickel are not under Western sanctions, their access to global trading platforms has been restricted. In April 2024, the US and UK barred the London Metal Exchange (LME) and Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) from accepting new Russian-origin aluminum, copper, and nickel and barred imports of the metals. Washington had earlier imposed 200% duties on Russian-made aluminum products, while Canada enacted a full ban on imports of Russian aluminum and steel. Earlier this year, the EU introduced a phased ban on Russian aluminum, setting a 275,000-ton quota that runs through February 2026. The Kremlin has condemned the sanctions as 'illegal,' warning they will backfire on those imposing them. The measures triggered spikes in global metal prices, with aluminum seeing its biggest surge on the LME in decades. Moscow has redirected exports to Asia and the Middle East amid the shift away from Western markets. People familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that Norilsk Nickel began boosting sales to China in the second half of 2024. The company is also reportedly working with a unit of Chinese gold giant Shandong Gold to expand copper cathode shipments to the country. Sanctioned producers such as Russian Copper and UMCC may also be shipping metal to China, the sources said. Norilsk Nickel's chief executive, Vladimir Potanin, has said the company plans to relocate some copper smelting operations to China to safeguard exports from sanctions pressure on financial transactions.
Russia Today
3 hours ago
- Russia Today
Another EU state introduces immigration controls
Poland has decided to temporarily reintroduce border controls along its frontiers with Germany and Lithuania to stop the flow of illegal migrants. All three nations are part of the Schengen Area, which allows free travel across most of the bloc. The EU has been grappling with a refugee crisis since at least 2015, largely caused by upheavals in the Middle East and Africa, and later by the Ukraine conflict. Warsaw has previously accused German police of 'dumping' thousands of migrants back across the Polish border. Some activists have organized self-styled 'citizen border patrols' along the German frontier. 'We remain advocates for freedom of movement in Europe, but only on condition that there is the shared will of all neighbors… to minimize the uncontrolled flow of migrants across our borders,' Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said during a cabinet meeting on Tuesday. He stated that temporary border controls would similarly be implemented on Poland's border with Lithuania. In 2023, neighboring Germany, the EU's top destination for asylum seekers, introduced temporary controls on its borders with Poland and the Czech Republic to stem the flow. Most of the people entering Poland travel on to western Europe, where benefits for asylum seekers are more generous. Berlin has since repeatedly renewed the controls. Under the Schengen agreement, participant nations are allowed to temporarily reintroduce border controls in emergency situations, with the Covid-19 outbreak having been one recent instance. Tighter national migration and border control policies could lead to the destruction of the EU, former German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned in May. Commenting on the restoration of control on the Polish-Lithuanian border, Tusk accused the Baltic state, as well as neighboring Latvia, of having lax border controls. The lapses have supposedly allowed illegal migrants to cross over from non-EU Belarus, and subsequently to enter Poland. Since 2021, Warsaw has accused Minsk and Moscow of deliberately orchestrating the flow of illegal migrants into EU states. Russia and Belarus have denied the allegations.
Russia Today
5 hours ago
- Russia Today
Paris says Le Pen's AC plan full of hot air
France's environment minister on Tuesday rejected a plan by former leader of the National Rally party Marine Le Pen to install air conditioners nationwide to protect citizens during increasingly hot summers, Politico has reported. Agnes Pannier-Runacher claims that AC units could make heatwaves worse by blowing out hot air on to the street, according to the outlet. France is battling extreme temperatures as a powerful heatwave grips southern Europe. The country has closed dozens of schools and issued health alerts. Soaring temperatures have also scorched Portugal, Spain, Italy, and Greece. 'The government wants ordinary people to suffer the heat while the so-called French elites benefit from air conditioning,' Le Pen said in a post on X on Monday. She voiced outrage over the conditions students are facing in the heat and pledged to launch a major air conditioning plan if elected. Earlier this year, the three-time presidential candidate was sentenced to four years in prison for embezzlement – two suspended and two under house arrest – and banned from holding office for five years, barring her from the 2027 presidential race. Minister for Ecological Transition Agnes Pannier-Runacher reportedly called Le Pen's air conditioning plan an 'inadequate adaptation' to climate change and said it would contribute to overheating cities. 'When you cool a room, you need heat to obtain the cold – which means you're necessarily heating another area,' she told reporters on Tuesday. 'You're heating up the streets, which increases hot spots.' A 2020 study published in the journal Environmental Research Letters warned that traditional air conditioning systems that vent hot air outdoors can raise urban temperatures by several degrees. 'Although it is an efficient solution for households that can afford it, AC makes the situation worse for households who cannot or do not want to adopt it,' the study said. Despite this, Le Pen's party doubled down on the proposal. 'Our goal is to install air conditioners as widely as possible – in administrations, schools, retirement homes and private homes,' National Rally lawmaker Frederic Falcon said in a statement. France has historically seen limited adoption of air conditioning, as many view it with skepticism. Concerns include its high energy consumption, association with bourgeois luxury, and the unsubstantiated belief that it circulates poor-quality air. Government policy has prioritized other cooling measures such as planting trees, installing reflective surfaces and improving building insulation, particularly in public spaces and strategic infrastructure.
