Investigative reporting by The Insider claims the Italian weapons maker Beretta has continued exporting light arms to Russia despite sanctions. The report says that between March 2022 and February 2024, at least 15,337 Western weapon kits entered Russia, with more than 6,000 linked to Beretta subsidiaries such as Benelli, Beretta, Sako, Tikka and Armi SpA. The investigation alleges that semi‑automatic Benelli shotguns (models M2, M3 and M4) are in the hands of the Russian Ministry of Defence and the Federal Security Service (FSB) for use against Ukrainian FPV drones, while Russian snipers are said to employ Sako and Tikka precision rifles.
Beretta has denied the accusations, stating that attempts are being made to tarnish its reputation and that the documents cited may relate to counterfeit goods rather than the company's own exports.