U.S. Firm Exec Sold High-Tech Products In Russia

US technology company Extreme Networks Inc. said last year it had suspended all business activities in Russia to show solidarity with the people of Ukraine "living under attack" but David Gauthier-Villars and Aram Roston reported for Reuters that the firm’s senior manager did not stop doing business there.

Photo Insert: Western sanctions haven't stopped billions of dollars of computer and other electronic components from flowing into Russia through networks of third-party suppliers.

Sergey Gusakov, while still working as Extreme's manager for former Soviet republics, created his own company in April 2022 to supply Russian clients with IT equipment made by a competitor of his employer, interviews with two people familiar with the matter, as well as Russian corporate and customs records, showed.

He sold IT equipment made by a Chinese competitor of his employer. Gusakov’s profile was removed from Extreme's website on June 23, after Reuters inquired about his status with the company.

The equipment sold in Russia by Gusakov's company Vektor-T are assembled in China and contains US microprocessors.

A Reuters investigation late last year showed how voluntary export bans by tech companies and broader Western sanctions adopted after Moscow launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 haven't stopped billions of dollars of computer and other electronic components from flowing into Russia through networks of third-party suppliers.

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