Almost £2 million worth of British-made military equipment has made its way to Russia through the company of an Instagram influencer, reported the BBC, which has reached customs documents identifying the entities involved in the export of military equipment.

The company through which the British camera lenses are exported is registered in Kyrgyzstan. These documents show that it belongs to Valeria Baygashina an influencer who promotes swimwear on Instagram.

British manufacturer of the Beck Optronic Solutions products is a supplier of components for Challenger 2 tanks and F35 fighter jets. When questioned about the transaction by the BBC, the company asserted that it had not acted against sanctions imposed on Russia knew nothing about the shipments and that customs documents may have been falsified.

The British broadcaster’s investigation found that there was no evidence that Beck Optronic Solutions knowingly supported the Russian military industry.

Twenty-five-year-old Baigashina is a Kazakh citizen living in Belarus. Her social media shows that she leads a lavish lifestyle.

According to Belarusian documents, Baigashina is the founder and director of Rama Group LLC, a company established in 2023 and registered in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

An investigation by British journalists found that Rama Group delivered two of the six shipments of high-quality optical equipment used for missiles, tanks, or fighters to Moscow. 

Shisan LLC, also registered in Kyrgyzstan, was responsible for the rest of the shipments. The value of all exported equipment amounted to $2.1 million. Rama Group and Shisan LLC. are registered in Bishkek at the same address.

Two of the six shipments finally reached Ural Optical & Mechanical Plant which is an entity sanctioned by the US Treasury. The plant manufactures military equipment used for in the construction of bombs and missiles.

In a conversation with the BBC, Baigashina asserted that the information about her involvement in the transactions was false and that the Rama Group company no longer belonged to her when transactions took place. 

Journalists checked the information provided and indeed, in May this year, she sold the company to her friend Andzhelika Zhurenko, who also rejected all presented allegations.

Source: PAP

Photo:@TonyNewsCamera

Tomasz Modrzejewski