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MediaMarkt and Saturn stop selling DJI products
As the website heise online reports, the German electronics retailers MediaMarkt and Saturn have removed the products of the Chinese drone manufacturer DJI from their offers. Both markets, which together belong to the MediaMarktSaturn Retail Group, are boycotting DJI and distancing themselves from it. The reason for the action is said to be a cooperation between the drone manufacturer and the Russian military in the Ukraine war. On Twitter, a user named Dang MediaMarkt pointed out that DJI is collaborating with the Russian Federation and asked for the company’s boycott.
@mediamarkt_de Hello. DJI is cooperating with the aggressor country of the Russian Federation. They are leaking GPS data of ZSU positions to them, which is a violation of the rules of war. I beg you, stop selling their products, maybe it will help us. thanks #boycottDJI pic.twitter.com/rq0a44JWhz
– Dang (@Dang01150781) March 25, 2022
MediaMarkt responded promptly and announced that there had recently been increasing evidence of a cooperation between the two parties. According to the information, the Russian army would use drones and data from DJI for military operations in Ukraine. As a responsible company, however, they reacted immediately and removed the manufacturer’s products from the range until further notice. This step sends a clear signal for the values that have the highest priority for MediaMarkt and are being violated by Russia’s war of aggression.
Allegations of cooperation between DJI and Russia in the Ukraine war
However, Twitter user Dang is not the only one to accuse DJI of collaborating with the Russian military. Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov also tweeted that Russian troops use DJI products for their missile attacks and asked the company if it really wanted to be the partner in these assassinations.
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
Finally, in an attached, open letter to the Chinese drone manufacturer, he officially called on them to sever relations with the Russian Federation and stop business until the war was completely over. In addition, Fedorov asked DJI to provide Ukraine with important information about the drones in the country. In addition, the company will enable Ukrainian users to use the DJI AeroScope feature, which is currently said to be used by Russian units to identify and monitor enemy drones, and all drones and services operating outside of Ukraine (particularly in Russia, Syria and the Lebanon) have been purchased and activated.
DJI rejects allegations and is willing to compromise
However, while allegations against DJI mount, the company maintains that all allegations made are completely false. In response to Dang’s tweet, DJI wrote that they only support civilian drone use. The services offered would benefit society and would be used by firefighters and rescue teams, among others, to protect human life. A use that harms people would not be supported in any way.
The allegations against DJI are utterly false. DJI promotes civilian drone applications that benefit society. We do not support ANY use that does harm to people’s lives, rights and interests. Firefighters, rescue teams, and other agencies are using our products to save lives.
– DJI FlySafe (@DJIFlySafe) March 25, 2022
The company also responded to the tweet by Vice Prime Minister Fedorov with a statement. Here, too, the design of the products was confirmed for civilian use. DJI’s drones and applications are not suitable for military use. Regarding Fedorovo’s demands, the company said its hands are largely tied. The AeoroScope system is built into all recent devices and cannot be turned off. In addition, DJI cannot provide Ukraine with pilots’ personal information or flight data, as the company does not receive them unless a user actively transmits them to DJI. The whereabouts of the users could also not be identified and verified. However, should the Ukrainian government formally ask DJI to set up a no-fly zone for its own drones over Ukraine, this could be arranged according to the guidelines. This then applies to all devices, regardless of which side they belong to. However, this so-called “geofencing” is not error-free and could be circumvented by simply not updating the update, so that drones could continue to fly over Ukraine even after the imposition.
– DJI (@DJIGlobal) March 16, 2022
Nicolas Flohr / Editor finanzen.net
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