Foreign Cars Flow to Russia Through China, Skirting Ukraine War Sanctions

A Hongqi H9 car is displayed at a Panavto dealership in Moscow, Russia, December 19, 2025. Tens of thousands of cars are being exported from China to Russia under gray-market schemes circumventing Western and Asian government sanctions. REUTERS/Ramil Sitdikov
A Hongqi H9 car is displayed at a Panavto dealership in Moscow, Russia, December 19, 2025. Tens of thousands of cars are being exported from China to Russia under gray-market schemes circumventing Western and Asian government sanctions. REUTERS/Ramil Sitdikov

By Alessandro Parodi, Gleb Stolyarov and Alexandr Reshetnikov

Tens of thousands of cars are being exported from China to Russia under gray-market schemes that often circumvent Western and Asian government sanctions and automakers’ commitments to exit the Russian market, according to registration data reviewed by Reuters and interviews with five people involved in the trade.

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by Reuters

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