Chinese drone maker DJI halts business in Russia and Ukraine

The move marks a rare exit from Russia by a prominent Chinese company since the war started, and comes after Ukrainian authorities claimed that DJI’s drones were being used by the Russian military.In a brief In February, Didi announced that it would exit the Russian market, but abruptly changed course days later, saying in a brief statement that it would continue operating there. The Chinese ride-hailing giant did not give a reason for the reversal, and did not respond to a request for comment. Huawei has also faced scrutiny for not declaring a stance on the issue. In March, two directors of the telecom giant’s UK subsidiary resigned over the company’s refusal to condemn the invasion.In a statement at the time, a Huawei spokesperson thanked the directors, Andrew Cahn and Ken Olisa, for their service and said they had “helped uphold the highest standards of corporate governance,” without mentioning Russia or the war.Under scrutinyDJI, which is known for its popular consumer drones, has faced criticism recently from the government of Ukraine, which has publicly accused the company of complicity in Russian attacks.Last month, Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov posted an The company referred to a previous statement issued in March, where it reiterated that it did not market or sell products for military use and “unequivocally opposed attempts to attach weapons to our products.”The firm said it had also pledged to cut business ties with distributors if they did not commit to an agreement to refuse sale of DJI’s products “to customers who clearly plan to use them for military purposes, or help modify our products for military use.”