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British Export Deal Raises Alarms Over Indirect Support for Russia’s War Effort
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The UK government is facing renewed scrutiny over an export licence granted to a British engineering firm after an investigation raised concerns that the deal could indirectly support Russia’s war effort against Ukraine.
An investigation by The Guardian, unveiled on February 9, found that Cygnet Texkimp received government approval to export high-tech machinery to Armenia, despite links between the recipient company and Russia’s military supply chain. Sanctions specialists and the chair of the House of Commons business committee have since urged the government to re-examine the decision.
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Cygnet Texkimp manufactures equipment used to produce carbon fibre “prepreg”, a lightweight and heat-resistant material with both civilian and military applications. The machines are understood to be in the final stages of assembly at the company’s facility in Northwich, Cheshire, and could be exported within weeks to Rydena LLC, a company registered in Armenia.
According to The Guardian, Rydena was founded after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine by former senior executives of Umatex, a key supplier to Russia’s defense industry. Umatex is a division of Rosatom and was sanctioned by the US in February 2023 and by the UK later that year. US authorities have described carbon fibre as “critical” to Russia’s war machine, noting its use across aircraft, missiles, ground combat vehicles, and military protective equipment.
Olena Yurchenko, director for analysis, investigations, and research at the Economic Security Council of Ukraine, said the material is “indispensable” for modern Russian weaponry.
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“Umatex serves as the material base for a significant portion of Russian military programmes,” she said, adding that sanctions have increased Moscow’s reliance on indirect procurement routes for advanced equipment.
Corporate records show that Rydena’s leadership includes Dmitry Kogan, Umatex’s former deputy chief executive, and Alexander Shleynikov, its former director of business development. Both are also listed as directors of a Cyprus-based holding company and gave Moscow addresses in recent filings.
A third former Umatex executive, aerospace composites specialist Aleksandr Ilichev, later joined Rydena as well. Rydena’s public materials reference work in aerospace, unmanned aerial vehicles, and advanced composites.
Armenia has been identified in UK government reporting as one of several countries used by Russia to source restricted goods indirectly. Sanctions experts warn that this creates a heightened risk that sensitive technology exported for civilian use could be diverted.
Cygnet Texkimp said it had complied fully with UK export control rules and that it “undertook detailed end-user checks required by export controls and received full export approval” from the government.
The company said Rydena had signed an undertaking confirming the equipment would not be used for prohibited military purposes. Rydena, for its part, said the machinery was intended for civilian industrial production and that it does not do business with Russian clients or sanctioned jurisdictions.
Sanctions expert Anna Bradshaw questioned the effectiveness of such assurances.
“There is a clear diversion risk and if the response is that this is mitigated by an end-user statement then that’s very worrying,” she said. “Everyone knows that an end-user undertaking is a limited remedy. If it’s breached, the ship has sailed.”
Cygnet has already shared technical drawings with Rydena and agreed to provide manuals translated into Russian, a language commonly used in Armenian industry, The Guardian reported.
Liam Byrne, chair of the House of Commons business and trade select committee, said the case raised serious questions about enforcement.
“There are a bunch of red flags here and the government has to explain what it did to assure itself that this was all fine,” he said, adding that the committee is “deeply concerned that the government’s enforcement posture is not in the right place.”
A spokesperson for the Department for Business and Trade said the UK operates “one of the most robust export control regimes anywhere in the world” and that licensing decisions are made in line with strict criteria. The department declined to say whether officials had examined Rydena’s links to Umatex.
Earlier, it was reported that the UK’s Royal Navy is set to open a new command hub along the country’s eastern coastline aimed at countering Russia’s so-called shadow fleet.
The center would allow naval personnel to monitor sanctioned oil tankers and, where warranted, detain ships suspected of bypassing international sanctions.
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