Ukraine suspects Russia of using DJI drones to target strategic areas for bombing. The government in kyiv is therefore asking the Chinese company to intervene to block its devices.
The war in Ukraine continues, more than 20 days after the invasion of the Russian army. The armed conflict continues to rage and, inevitably, the belligerents use technology to try to gain the upper hand. This is how DJI finds itself in trouble. The drone manufacturer – which notably released the Mavic 3 at the end of 2021 – was indeed arrested by the Ukrainian government.
Mykhailo Fedorov, Minister of Digital Transformation, posted a tweet in which he claimed that Russia’s military ” has already killed 100 Ukrainian children“. He then adds that Vladimir Putin’s troops “use DJI products to guide their missiles“.
In 21 days of the war, russian troops has already killed 100 Ukrainian children. they are using DJI products in order to navigate their missile. @DJIGlobal are you sure you want to be a partner in these murders? Block your products that are helping russia to kill the Ukrainians! pic.twitter.com/4HJcTXFxoY
— Mykhailo Fedorov (@FedorovMykhailo) March 16, 2022
“Are you sure you want to be an accomplice to their murders? Block your products that help Russia kill Ukrainians! This is how Mykhailo Fedorov’s tweet concludes, directly tagging the official DJI Global account.
The minister attaches a copy of a letter he sent to the boss of the Chinese company. In his letter, he writes that Russia succeeds in targeting strategic areas through the use of its DJI drones.
The technique of geofencing
As indicatedVice, DJI does have the opportunity to respond to the request of the Ukrainian government. The company can indeed delimit no-fly zones to prevent its drones from entering them.
This technique called “geofencing” is DJI already uses it in other countries at war such as Iraq or Syria as well as in sensitive places (airports, military bases, etc.).
DJI’s response
DJI responded to Mykhailo Fedorov’s tweet by sharing a statement. The firm specifies in particular that if the Ukrainian government so requests, it can set up geofencing above the country.
However, this restriction will apply to all DJI drones, “no matter who drives them“. The devices used by the Ukrainian army would also be affected.
The case of Aeroscope
Ukraine also suspects Russia of using Aeroscope, another DJI product. This makes it possible to geolocate the brand’s drones. According to kyiv, the Russian army uses it to spot and attack Ukrainian drones. On the other hand, according to Mykhailo Fedorov, this function would no longer be available on the Ukrainian side.
DJI refutes these accusations stating that “this function cannot be turned off“. In other words, Aeroscope can still be used by both Russians and Ukrainians.
DJI drones were obviously not designed for military purposes, but it is sadly not surprising to see their functions diverted in this way in times of war.
Remember also that DJI is a Chinese company. However, Beijing remains officially neutral in this conflict.
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