US companies continue to buy large quantities of birch plywood from Russia, including from companies owned by Russian oligarchs close to Putin and sanctioned by the EU and UK. The Ukrainian parliament recently called on the international community to ban the purchase of timber from Russia, a call that has been heeded by both the UK and the EU, while the US government has so far ignored it. Over the past five months, $341 million worth of Russian plywood has been imported into the United States (retail value). This premium material is used in furniture and kitchen appliances ...