Drone giant DJI Technology said it will temporarily suspend business in Russia and Ukraine, making it the first major Chinese company to halt sales to Russia since the country invaded neighbouring Ukraine in February.

“DJI is internally reassessing compliance requirements in various jurisdictions,” the privately held company said in a statement late on Tuesday. “Pending the current review, DJI will temporarily suspend all business activities in Russia and Ukraine.”

Although Western firms have pulled out of Russia in protest, many Chinese companies have stayed there, taking a cue from Beijing’s stance of refraining from criticism of Moscow over the invasion.

Ukrainian officials and citizens have accused DJI, the world’s largest maker of consumer and industrial drones, of leaking data on the Ukrainian military to Russia.

Last month DJI dismissed those accusations as “utterly false”. A German retailer had cited such information as a reason for taking DJI products off shelves.

Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine on February 24 in what it called a special operation to degrade its southern neighbour’s military capabilities and root out people it called dangerous nationalists.

Although the company had noticed footage online that suggested the Russian military was using its products, a DJI spokesperson said last month it had not been able to confirm this and had no control over the use of its products.

“We are engaging with customers, partners and other stakeholders regarding the temporary suspension of business operations in the affected territories,” DJI’s statement on Tuesday added.

© Thomson Reuters 2022

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