May 9, 2022
The British government has sanctioned 63 Russian companies, including the country’s main chipmakers, Baikal Electronics and MCST (Moscow Center of SPARC Technologies).
Under the sanctions, the two manufacturers of microprocessors will not have access to the ARM architecture, as Arm Ltd., the licensee, is based in Cambridge, England. This makes it impossible not to comply with the sanctions.
“The purpose of this provision is to encourage Russia to cease actions destabilizing Ukraine or undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty or independence of Ukraine.”
Although the chips manufactured by these two companies have been described as inferior and considered unacceptable by many, they are believed to remain critical to Russia’s efforts to achieve technological independence.
Although considered middle- and lower-class chips, they are considered very useful for keeping some important parts of Russia’s IT department running during shortages.
Russia has evaded sanctions in the past, but this will be difficult as Baikal and MCST chips are produced in foreign foundries. As this is the case, the two companies will not violate Arm’s licensing rules and international law in order to advance Russian interests.
The sources for this piece include an article in BleepingComputer.
