US eases some sanctions on Belarus' Belavia amid concerns over Russian access

Exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya expressed concern that relaxing sanctions could allow Russian airlines to obtain aircraft parts through Belavia. She told the Associated Press that “removing sanctions without meaningful reforms in Belarus risks creating loopholes that both the Lukashenko regime and Russia could exploit to bypass restrictions.”

Western sanctions have impacted Russia’s ability to maintain its commercial aviation sector since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Despite these efforts, reports indicate that Russia has managed to import significant quantities of Airbus and Boeing components through third countries such as Turkey, China, and especially via the United Arab Emirates.

Russia’s reliance on foreign-made aircraft remains high; over 80% of its commercial planes were produced outside Russia as recently as 2022 (https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/how-russias-aviation-industry-surviving-sanctions). As domestic production increases with models like MC-21 or Sukhoi Superjet, major carriers such as Aeroflot will need these alternatives to replace aging fleets.

Belavia currently operates a fleet averaging nearly 17 years old according to ch-aviation data (https://www.ch-aviation.com/portal/airline/B2). Its main aircraft types include several Boeing models—five Boeing 737-800s, two Boeing 737-300s, one Boeing 737 MAX 8, one Boeing 737-800 BBJ variant for business use, and one widebody Boeing 767-300ER—as well as Embraer regional jets and three Airbus A330-200s.

Prior to EU-imposed sanctions limiting its network mostly to non-European destinations like Moscow from Minsk (https://www.routesonline.com/news/29/breaking-news/296307/belavia-reduces-network-as-eu-airspace-ban-bites/), Belavia served dozens of cities across Europe and beyond.