Belgian company seeks exception to keep operating in Russia's drone hub — as it does so anyway

A Belgian factory continues to operate in Russia's special economic zone known as a key defense production site despite EU requirements to leave the zone by late January 2026.

Belgium's Federal Public Service Economy (FPS Economy) has not yet granted a derogation to any Belgian company under the relevant EU regulation, according to a statement obtained by Belgian media and seen by the Kyiv Independent.

That includes Drylock Technologies, a Belgian company that came under scrutiny in a Kyiv Independent investigation into Western companies that have continued operating in Russia's Alabuga Special Economic Zone.

The zone is home to the country's largest factory producing Shahed attack drones — weapons that have terrorized Ukraine's civilians for nearly four years.

Drylock Technologies is a Belgian manufacturer of diapers and other hygiene products. It has factories across the world, including in Russia. The Kyiv Independent found that the manufacturer's Russian subsidiary has publicly voiced support for its Russian employees' participation in the war against Ukraine.

Under European Union restrictions, EU-linked companies were required to leave the Alabuga zone by Jan. 25, 2026. A number of companies failed to comply, Drylock Technologies among them.

Following the Kyiv Independent’s reporting, the Belgian newspaper De Tijd found that Drylock Technologies is in talks with the Belgian government over a possible exception that would allow its plant in the Alabuga Zone to continue operating — but has not yet been granted it.

"The derogation options included in this article are exceptions to a general prohibition and are therefore assessed strictly, exhaustively, and on a case-by-case basis," said Etienne Mignolet, an FPS Economy spokesperson.

The spokesperson added that applicants must demonstrate that the specific activities in question are strictly necessary for one of the purposes expressly listed in the regulation.

"It is not sufficient that the activities or products concerned have a civil, hygienic, or socially useful character," Mignolet said.

"Alabuga is well known as the center of manufacturing for the Shahed drones, which have been heavily used by Russia in its terror campaign against civilian infrastructure in Ukraine," EU Sanctions Envoy David O'Sullivan earlier told the Kyiv Independent, explaining the rationale behind the restrictions.

Sanctions circumvention is a crime, he added, and it falls to the national competent authorities of member states to ensure the measure is effectively enforced.

Months after the Kyiv Independent investigation that highlighted that Drylock's Russian subsidiary publicly supports its employees who join the war against Ukraine, the company keeps on it.

Drylock's official page in VK, a Russian social network, continues to post messages supporting units of the Russian armed forces, De Tijd reported.

"Have a nice Airborne Forces Day," read a post in August, accompanying an image of a paratrooper. In July, the page marked the Russian Navy Day, saying its team "includes people connected to this holiday."