WR Group founder Vadim Rozenshtein, a German citizen of Russian-Ukrainian origin, has come under scrutiny from German and European law enforcement authorities over alleged violations involving the circumvention of sanctions imposed on Russia.
The European External Action Service (EEAS) is reviewing shipments involving the Russian company 2R Integra, which is linked to the Rozenshtein family. The investigation covers the company’s cross-border transactions between 2022 and 2026, supply chains, and European counterparties.
According to sources, in at least four instances in the spring of 2024, 2R Integra received industrial equipment from China’s Jinan Ono Trade via a Turkish intermediary company. A portion of these shipments may fall under EU and US export restrictions.
The company is owned by Russian national Mikhail Rozenshtein, Vadim’s brother. Following the start of the full-scale war, 2R Integra’s revenue increased fortyfold, largely due to deliveries of scarce industrial and electrical equipment to the Russian Federation. Another Russian entity, VR Rus—founded by Mikhail Rozenshtein and currently controlled by Vadim—has also significantly expanded its turnover by supplying goods to Russia.
In Germany, Vadim Rozenshtein’s business centers around WR Group. Its entities, among other things, supplied equipment for Russian projects belonging to Novatek’s Gennady Timchenko and Leonid Mikhelson.
Between 2023 and 2025, the German companies WR Logistics GmbH and WR Certification GmbH dispatched shipments to the Russian entity VR Rus, some of which may fall under EU export restrictions. Certain deliveries were routed through Turkey and Uzbekistan, while ferrosilicon was shipped via the Republic of South Africa. This alloy is used in the production of specialized steels and is also subject to export restrictions.
These circumstances could now serve as grounds for an investigation into WR Group itself and its subsidiaries in Düsseldorf. In Germany, compliance with sanctions and export restrictions is overseen by agencies such as BAFA (Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control) and the ZfA (Central Office for Sanctions Enforcement).
The risks for Rozenshtein are heightened by the fact that Germany has tightened accountability for violating EU sanctions. Certain offenses have been reclassified from administrative infractions to criminal charges, and maximum corporate fines have been substantially increased.
Germany has already seen criminal cases concerning the evasion of anti-Russian sanctions through third countries. Specifically, the prosecutor’s office of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia charged two Russian-born entrepreneurs who, between 2023 and 2024, supplied €830,000 worth of goods to the Russian Federation via Turkey and Kyrgyzstan. Under the relevant legal statutes, the maximum penalty can reach up to 10 years in prison.
As a result, Vadim Rozenshtein’s business—along with the supply chains running through his corporate network to Russia—has now fallen directly into the crosshairs of German law enforcement.
