Czech beer continues to reach structures tied to Russia’s foreign intelligence service despite European Union sanctions imposed after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. That is according to Czech outlet Page Not Found, which cites customs data and Russian state procurement contracts.
According to the report, after many Czech breweries publicly said they had stopped exports to Russia, an alternative route was set up. The supply chain includes the Czech companies RedFood and Custom Trade, as well as the Serbia-based firm Craft Connect DOO. Investigators link all three to businessman Mikhail Kapitanov. The beer was allegedly delivered to Russian importer PintaKlub and then to the federal state enterprise Yasen, which was founded by the SVR.
Page Not Found says the key end recipient was SVR director Sergey Naryshkin. The report adds that Yasen officially deals in military property, holds an alcohol license valid until 2030, and owns sanatoriums in Moscow, Sochi, and occupied Crimea.
From September 2024 to February 2025, more than 1.28 million liters of Czech beer worth about 25 million Czech koruna were shipped through this channel, the investigators calculated. That is roughly 94.25 million rubles or $1.2 million. The brands named include Budějovický Budvar, beers from Lobkowicz, including Lobkowicz, Platan, and Ježek, as well as Světlovar. The largest volume, about 1 million liters, was attributed to Velká pinta, whose origin the investigators described as unclear.
The authors say their conclusions are based on data from Russia’s public procurement registry and customs records. They also state that Kapitanov was still supplying Russia through his firms as of February 2025, despite claiming he had stopped trading with the country.
The article also gives broader context. In 2023, The Insider reported that beer from Lithuania’s Volfas Engelman continued reaching Russia through intermediaries, including PintaKlub. It also notes that in the first nine months of 2025, China became Russia’s largest beer supplier at $33.4 million, while the Czech Republic ranked second at $15.6 million; overall, beer supplies from EU countries fell to their lowest level in a decade.