Ukrainian Drone War Being Throttled by Chinese Trade Restrictions

The weapons pipeline to Ukraine is also being threatened in other ways, besides by the U.S. Congress. Ukraine’s drone war against Russia has depended heavily on consumer drones from China. China isn’t supplying drones to Ukraine for military purposes. Rather, they come into Ukraine via commercial routes. According to a long article in the New York Times, Chinese authorities are now moving to stop that flow, as new Chinese rules to restrict the export of drone components took effect on Sept. 1. In recent months, Chinese companies have cut back sales of drones and components to Ukrainians, according to an analysis of trade data, and interviews with more than a dozen Ukrainian drone makers, pilots and trainers by the Times. The Chinese firms still willing to sell often require buyers to use complicated networks of intermediaries, similar to those Russia has used to get around American and European export controls.