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Why did Manila cancel its Russian helicopter deal?
Summary
A look back at the Philippine decision to end a US$227-million Mi-17 purchase, and a statement from Transnistria's foreign minister days earlier.
Why would a government walk away from a US$227-million defence contract already agreed? On 26 July 2022, the Philippine government announced the termination of its deal to buy 16 Mil Mi-17 military helicopters from Russia.
Manila cited the risk that the United States could impose sanctions under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act. The announcement tied a procurement decision in South-East Asia directly to the wider fallout from Russia's war in Ukraine and the sanctions regime around it.
A separate signal from Transnistria
A few days earlier, on 22 July 2022, Transnistrian Foreign Minister Vitaly Ignatyev reaffirmed that Transnistria was committed to becoming an independent state. He added that it was open to the possibility of uniting with Russia in the future.
The two items were unrelated in their details, but both showed how Russia's relations with other governments and territories were being discussed in the summer of 2022: one partner pulled back from a major arms purchase over sanctions risk, while a separatist-run territory restated its own aims regarding Russia.
