Author: Rob Davies

Ministers are reviewing a decision to allow a British company to export hi-tech equipment to Armenia after the Guardian uncovered links to the Russian military supply chain.Cygnet Texkimp, based in Cheshire, was weeks away from exporting two machines that produce carbon fibre “prepreg”, a lightweight material that can be used in a range of civil and military applications.Whitehall officials told Cygnet last year that it did not require a special licence for the shipment, signalling that the government’s routine vetting process for exports had raised no concerns about how the equipment could be used and by whom.But the trade minister,…