Russia can't replace Western chips – so it gets them illegally

Semiconductors have become a crucial technology for any country. National security directly depends on the availability of semiconductors, since without them a wide range of equipment is impossible to operate: from the simplest household appliances to the most complex weapons systems. Semiconductor manufacturing is extremely complex and requires the supply of many state-of-the-art technologies. In a situation of growing political tension between the U.S. and China, both countries began to create two independent semiconductor manufacturing systems. The creation of such a system required significant financial resources and state support. In August, the CHIPS and Science Act was adopted in the…