China Keeps Supplying Autel And DJI Drones To Russia

China has supplied over $12 million worth of Autel and DJI drones to Russia since its invasion of Ukraine, highlighting the quiet collaboration between the two nations, the NY Times writes.

Despite efforts from the U.S. Government to limit critical technology sales to Russia, Chinese drone exports remain difficult to stop.

In the past year, China has sold drones and drone components to Russia, with official Russian customs data from a third-party revealing that these shipments include Autel and DJI drones and products from several smaller firms.

It is difficult to determine whether or not these Chinese drones infringe on US restrictions by including any US technology.

Shipments frequently go through a network of small-scale middlemen and exporters. Moreover, convoluted sales channels and vague product descriptions in export data make it difficult to verify whether or not Chinese products contain components sourced from the United States.

Official sales…