The United States on Thursday said it was taking enforcement action aimed at preventing three Russian airlines — Aeroflot, Azur Air and UTair — from continuing to operate, both internationally and within Russia itself.
“With today’s temporary denial orders, the Department of Commerce takes another significant action to hold Putin and his enablers accountable for their inexcusable actions,” Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said in a statement.
The new “TDOs” are the first enforcement actions taken by the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security under the stringent export controls imposed by the United States in response to Russia’s unprovoked and brutal invasion of Ukraine. The orders, which department officials described as one of their strongest civil penalties, are in place for 180 days, but could be renewed.
The actions are part of a larger coordinated campaign with allies aimed at punishing Russia by denying it access to critical technologies needed to run a modern economy.
"U.S. exports to Russia of items subject to new licensing requirements have decreased by 99 percent by value compared to the same time period last year," Deputy Commerce Secretary Don Graves said. "A big reason they're working is because they're the result of unprecedented cooperation between the U.S. and our partners and allies and their effects will only compound over time."
He noted that 33 nations have formally joined the United States in imposing export controls on a multilateral basis, and hundreds of global companies have halted doing business in and with Russia.
If the airlines defy the new Commerce Department order, they could face additional action under BIS’ criminal sanctions authority, although department officials talked only generally about what that could entail.
"If people violate our rules we take action," a department official said. These are temporary denial orders. We also have the ability to deny people's export [privileges] and companies' export privileges all together under our civil and administrative authority. And then depending on the conduct, there are always potential criminal violations and criminal consequences as well."
Commerce officials said all three Russian airlines have violated the export controls, which bar any U.S.-origin aircraft or any foreign aircraft that includes more than 25 percent U.S. controlled parts from operating without a license issued by BIS. All 34 of Azur Air's planes are U.S. origin, as are 48 of UTair's 63 planes and 59 of Aeroflot's 187 planes, the officials noted.
According to the department, Aeroflot operated multiple flights using U.S.-controlled aircraft between Moscow and cities in China, India, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, as well as domestic flights and between Moscow and two Russian cities.
Azur Air violated U.S. export controls on flights between Moscow and cities in Turkey, the Maldives, the United Arab Emirates and Vietnam and within Russia, the department said.
UTair’s violations occurred on flights between Russia and Tajikistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Saudi Arabia and Uzbekistan and on domestic flights.
The U.S. export controls also apply to parts needed to maintain those aircraft.
“Those restrictions are significant because it's obviously difficult to keep flying if you can't service your plane,” Matthew Axelrod, Commerce assistant secretary for export enforcement, told reporters. The department expects that “over time” the three airlines will “largely be unable to continue flying, either internationally or domestically,” he added.
American-made Boeing aircraft make up a large portion of the three airlines’ fleet; Commerce officials emphasized that Boeing itself is not in violation of U.S. export controls.
The department previously put the Russian owners of more than 160 airplanes on notice that they appear to have violated U.S. export controls by flying into Russia. Those include the three airlines hit with the new TDOs.
