German exports to countries neighboring Russia more than doubled in the first third of the year. Exports to the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) excluding Russia totaled 2.9 billion euros from January to April, as the Federal Statistical Office announced on Tuesday. That is 1.5 billion euros more than in the same period of the pre-war year 2021, which corresponds to an increase of 106.4 percent. Russia launched a war against Ukraine in February 2022 and has been sanctioned ever since.
Many experts assume that these are at least partially bypassed by deliveries to neighboring countries, from where they are forwarded to Russia. In the first four months of the year, most German goods exports to the CIS countries went to Kazakhstan (1.1 billion euros). They were 0.7 billion euros higher than in the same period in 2021. In the ranking of the most important recipient countries of German goods, Kazakhstan climbed from 62nd to 51st place. Exports to Belarus and Uzbekistan also increased from 440 to 617 million euros, respectively 176 to 315 million euros. Kyrgyzstan recorded an increase in exports from 15 million to 230 million euros.
Exports to the Russian Federation, on the other hand, fell
Mainly motor vehicles and motor vehicle parts with a value of 865 million euros were exported from Germany to the CIS countries. “This means that the export of these goods has more than quintupled compared to the same period in 2021,” according to the statisticians. Other important export goods were machines for 597 million euros (January to April 2021: 397 million euros) and chemical products for 282 million euros (147 million euros).
Exports to the Russian Federation, on the other hand, fell from 8.4 billion euros in the first four months of 2021 to 3.5 billion euros now. This corresponds to a drop of 58.3 percent. “The increase in exports to the CIS states accounted for less than a third of the decline in exports to Russia,” according to the Federal Statistical Office.
Various successor states of the Soviet Union have come together to form the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). In 2022 it included Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.