Maldives emerges as a Russian sanctions-evasion hub, with cargo paperwork ‘washed’ in two hours

The Maldives is known as an Indian Ocean holiday destination. It is now also being used as a transit point for goods that Russia cannot easily import through Western-controlled channels.

According to The Wall Street Journal, hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of export-controlled and sanctioned products have passed through Malé on their way to Moscow. The shipments include aircraft and electronic components with both civilian and military uses, such as microchips for precision missile guidance systems, optical equipment for military-tracking satellites, and high-strength aerospace rivets and bolts.

The volume moving through the Maldives remains small compared with Russia’s larger detours through China, Türkiye and the United Arab Emirates. Russia imports about $15 billion worth of sanctioned goods annually through those routes. But the appearance of the Maldives in the network points to how widely Russia’s efforts to bypass sanctions have spread.

Aeroflot passenger aircraft reportedly land at Malé airport every day. Russian-linked logistics companies and local intermediaries help clear American, European and Chinese goods before loading them onto flights bound for Moscow. The Maldives does not apply a full import process to the cargo. It remains inside the airport, undergoes only limited customs checks and is transferred between aircraft without a physical inspection as transit freight.

Tracing the cargo can also become harder after the transfer. The original air waybill lists the exporter and buyer, but some information, including the exporter’s name, is omitted when a new waybill is issued for the Moscow leg. The United States and European Union have been increasing pressure on banks, logistics companies and intermediaries in third countries. Maldivian authorities are also aware of the issue and have begun responding, the Journal reported.

The Maldives has economic reasons to avoid severing its links with Russia. Russian visitors are the second-largest group of foreign tourists in the country after Chinese visitors, while transit fees and aviation-fuel sales provide additional income. Maldives Airports Company recorded its highest-ever profit in 2024 and ranked as the most profitable state-owned company. The airport handled an average of 126 tonnes of cargo a day in July, with Aeroflot carrying 12% of the total during the first half of the year.