Russia continues to import Chinese drones for war in Ukraine – WSJ

Despite the sanctions, Russia continues to import civilian Chinese DJI drones through its distributors and from the Persian Gulf countries. 

Source: The Wall Street Journal reports

Detail: According to customs documents, some commercial drones are arriving at the front line from Russian distributors supplied by the Chinese company DJI, while others are transported via the United Arab Emirates.

Russia's continued deployment of Chinese drones on the Ukrainian battlefield shows how its army was able to draw in critical equipment from abroad, despite a large-scale sanctions campaign.

Thus, the Army has received some of the DJI drones from the UAE by paying for the delivery through the state bank Sberbank, which is under sanctions.

The Pentagon worries that these drones aren’t only fueling Russia’s war effort, but also are allowing China to gather crucial battlefield intelligence that might enhance Beijing’s war readiness.

Some drones and drone parts were delivered through the European Union.

In September, Dutch authorities arrested Dmitri Alexeievitch Koudriavtsev for allegedly exporting goods to Russia in violation of international export controls. Federal prosecutors in the Netherlands said Mr Koudriavtsev, Dutch-Russian owner of Woerd-Tech BV, was supplying the type of drones used by the Russian military.

Trade data show that Woerd-Tech shipped at least US$270,000 worth of export-controlled goods, including DJI drone parts. 

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