How China Is \u2018Controlling\u2019 Russia\u2019s Economy?<\/p>\n
Although bilateral trade between the two countries weakened last year\ndue to the drop in oil prices, Russia\u2019s exports to China were reported\nto have nearly doubled since February 2022, as Moscow intensified its\ninvasion of Ukraine. In 2024, total Russia\u2019s exports to China reached\n$129 billion (Rp2,050 trillion). Much of these exports consisted of\ncrude oil, coal, and natural gas sold at much lower prices. The Centre\nfor Energy and Clean Air Research calculates that China has bought more\nthan $372 billion (Rp5,700 trillion) worth of Russian fossil fuels since\nthe conflict began. Those transactions have provided currency stability\nto fund the war amid Western sanctions. In return, China\u2019s exports to\nRussia amounted to around $116 billion ( Rp1,840 quadrillion) to Russia\nin 2024. China\u2019s supply of machinery, electronics, and vehicles has\nreplaced Western suppliers that withdrew from the Russian market.\nAlthough Beijing has not directly exported military equipment to Russia,\nit has supplied dual-use items worth billions of dollars. These goods\ncan support civilian as well as military needs. This has also supported\nRussia\u2019s defence industry. As Putin and Xi prepare to meet in Beijing\nthis week to mark 25 years of bilateral ties, the asymmetry becomes more\napparent: Moscow is increasingly vulnerable and must align itself with\nChina\u2019s agenda or priorities.<\/p>\n
Why is Russia becoming more dependent on Chinese technology?<\/p>\n
Western sanctions, imposed since 2022 and tightened further, have cut\nRussia off from access to advanced Western technology. The United\nStates, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and their allies ban\nexports of semiconductors, microelectronics, precision machinery, and\nother dual-use goods essential for weapons production. The bans have\ncaused severe shortages in Russia. In response, Moscow has turned to\nChina, which, according to Bloomberg, supplied about 90% of sanctioned\nRussian technology imports in 2025, up from 80% the year before.\nObtaining items such as equipment and machinery for assembling missiles\nand drones is far more difficult and expensive than before the war. To\nobtain them, Russia has to exploit intricate networks through\nthird-country routes and often pay prices around 90% higher than pre-war\nlevels. Beijing has also supported Russia with earth-observation\nintelligence, satellite imagery for military use, and unmanned aerial\nvehicles, according to Bloomberg\u2019s report last year. Chinese technology\nhas enabled Russia to maintain and even expand the production of\nmissiles, drones, and other weapons, ensuring the wartime economy can\nkeep running.<\/p>\n
Transacting in Yuan<\/p>\n
As the war in Ukraine continues, the United States, the European\nUnion, and their allies have removed major Russian banks from the SWIFT\npayment system and frozen about $300 billion (around Rp4,950 trillion)\nof the Russian central bank\u2019s reserves held abroad. A dollar-dominated\nfinancial system has become an effective weapon against the Kremlin;\ntransactions in dollars or euros have become risky or even impossible\nfor Russia. The move also threatens foreign banks, individuals, and\nentities worldwide with secondary sanctions if they continue to work\nwith sanctioned Russian entities. In response, Moscow and Beijing are\naccelerating dedollarisation, i.e., the shift from the use of the US\ndollar to their respective national currencies. According to Russian\nFinance Minister Anton Siluanov, by the end of 2025 they had completed\nmore than 99% of bilateral trade in rubles and yuan.<\/p>\n
The trend is reinforced by BRICS, a bloc of developing countries.\nBRICS promotes settlement of transactions in local currencies among its\nten members, and has even proposed a plan to introduce a BRICS single\ncurrency.<\/p>\n
The phenomenon called<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/how-china-is-controlling-russias-economy-1779546131", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }