Sanctioned Tech: How a Russian Citizen Used Kazakhstan to Supply Restricted Equipment to Russia

A new investigation by The Insider has revealed how Kazakhstan was used as a transit hub to bypass Western sanctions and supply Russian defense enterprises with restricted equipment.

Orda.kz summarizes the key findings and adds some details.

Ivan Anchevsky, a dual citizen of Estonia and Russia, was extradited from Italy on suspicion of orchestrating a sanctions-evasion network. His companies — Melytek and Melytek Testing — supplied European-made equipment to Russia’s defense industry, using Kazakhstani firms to facilitate these shipments.

How the Network Operated

Anchevsky’s companies worked with Russian enterprises, including Uralvagonzavod and Proton-Perm Motors. They routed purchases through Kazakhstani firms Proflabkz and Quantum KZ to circumvent sanctions. Between 2023 and 2024, this scheme funneled an estimated $13 million worth of restricted technology into Russia.

Proflabkz LLP, based in Oskemen, specializes in wholesale trade across various industries. While the company has no government contracts, it holds an extensive portfolio of 380 licenses, most related to identifying specific goods. 

According to a directive issued by the Minister of Industry and Infrastructure Development on June 9, 2023, the list of specific goods includes dual-use items — technologies and materials that have both civilian and military applications.

For instance, on September 12, 2024, Proflabkz received a license to import a Bruker Xflash 6|30 high-speed energy-dispersive detector for a transmission electron microscope. However, the licensing decision also stated that this item would not be classified as a specific good if imported into Kazakhstan.

The company is relatively new, having been in operation for just over two years and eight months, yet it has already paid 425 million tenge in taxes. The bulk of this — 278 million tenge — was paid in 2024. The founder and director of Proflabkz LLP is Galina Sitrakova.

Quantum KZ LLP, also based in Oskemen, has been in operation for five years and three months. The company holds twice as many licenses, primarily related to importing and exporting specialized equipment.

However, unlike Proflabkz, Quantum KZ actively participates in government procurement, supplying equipment such as analyzers, diagnostic tools, and laboratory instruments.

Since its establishment, the company has paid over one billion tenge in taxes. Its founder and director is Yevgeny Rodionov.

Quantum KZ sources its equipment from leading European brands, including Fei Europe, Analytik Jena, Emco Test, Struers ApS, and Bruker AXS. Additionally, the Kazakh company Melitek Kazakhstan has been purchasing products from Mark M.V.E. Kft, a Hungarian firm linked to individuals from Eastern Europe.

Melitek Kazakhstan LLP is also registered in Oskemen.

The company holds multiple licenses for identifying specific goods and has participated in government procurement, though it has secured only six government contracts. The largest contract — worth 35 million tenge— was signed with state-owned Ulba-TVS LLP to supply machine tools and grinding machines.

The company’s founder and director, Oleg Fulman, established Melitek Kazakhstan in 2019. In 2024, his LLP became a co-founder of Melitek Testing LLC. Both companies are registered at the same address, but there is no publicly available information on taxes, licenses, or government contracts for the LLC.

Melitek is a well-known Russian company and one of the largest research equipment and services suppliers. It specializes in comprehensive solutions for production and research organizations, particularly materials science, chemical and phase analysis, and physical and mechanical testing.

On February 23, 2024, the U.S. Department of the Treasury added Melitek LLC to its sanctions list for supporting the Russian military-industrial complex. Later, on October 30, 2024, another affiliated company, Melitek Testing, was also sanctioned.

Ivan Anchevsky, the head of Melitek and Melitek Testing LLC, was deported from Italy and is now in custody in Estonia, awaiting further legal proceedings. Anchevsky holds both Russian and Estonian citizenship.

As part of the ongoing investigation, two Estonian companies have also come under scrutiny, one of which had Anchevsky serving on its board of directors.

Equipment and Suppliers

Between 2023 and 2024, approximately $35 million worth of equipment passed through Kazakhstan en route to Russia.

The shipments included:

• Optical and electronic microscopes
• X-ray fluorescence spectrometers, mass spectrometers, and atomic emission spectrometers
• Diffractometers
• Hardness testers, chromatograph
• Metallographic equipment

This equipment is primarily used for analyzing metals and alloys, detecting microcracks, polishing and grinding samples, and studying material structures.

The Insider reached out to European manufacturers for clarification.

EMCO-TEST stated that their shipments to Kazakhstan were made under strict conditions prohibiting the transfer of equipment to Russia. The company is now conducting internal checks to verify the final destination of the sold products.

Manufacturers emphasized that Russian firms were not listed as the intended end users.

Original Author: Ilya Astakhov