Ukraine-Russia War Archives - Gizmochina

Xiaomi Accused of Being an “International War Sponsor” by Ukraine

Oğuz Çakır — Fri, 14 Apr 2023 10:58:32 +0000

The tension between Russia and Ukraine continues at full speed. As the ongoing war passes its first-year mark, no progress has been made towards a ceasefire or peace agreement, leaving both countries negatively impacted. Ukraine is nearly in ruins due to the ongoing conflict, while Russia faces isolation from the rest of the world and numerous global companies, resulting in a severe economic downturn. However, it’s not just countries that are affected by this situation; neutral and multinational corporations are also experiencing significant losses. Ukraine recently accused Xiaomi of being an “International War Sponsor”. Here are the details…

Xiaomi Accused of Being an “International War Sponsor” by Ukraine

Xiaomi has unexpectedly found itself embroiled in the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, with serious accusations being leveled against the company. National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption of Ukraine (NAZK) announced that Xiaomi was added to the list of “International War Sponsors.” The Ukrainian government cited two primary reasons for this decision.

1/4The NACP included the Chinese @Xiaomi Corporation in the list of international war sponsors: https://t.co/Ph3cTQmbdc.
— NACP Ukraine (@NAZK_gov) April 13, 2023

Authorities claim that Xiaomi has remained active in the Russian market and has been a leading smartphone brand in the country since the conflict between Russia and Ukraine began. While Xiaomi has not conducted marketing campaigns since spring 2022, the company still holds a significant market share in Russia.

Since 2018, Xiaomi has been dominating online sales in Russia, boasting a vast network of official authorized retail stores. Recent NAZK data revealed that Xiaomi’s market share in Russia doubled in 2022, with Q3 deliveries increasing by 39% compared to the previous quarter. In the previous year, Xiaomi’s revenue in Russia reached a staggering $202 million.

The press release from the Ukraine stated that the decision to include Xiaomi in the list of international war sponsors was based on the company’s continued operation in Russia after its “full-scale invasion.” Despite these circumstances, Xiaomi remains the leading smartphone brand in what the Ukrainian government refers to as a “terrorist state.”

Xiaomi has consistently ranked first in sales on Russian online stores since 2018 and maintains a massive offline official authorized retail network throughout the country. In 2022, Xiaomi doubled its market share in Russia, solidifying its position as the nation’s leading smartphone brand. By July 2022, Xiaomi and its sub-brand POCO held a 42% market share in Russian smartphone sales, ranking first in terms of revenue.

Official data shows that, in 2021, Xiaomi’s Russian subsidiary generated $202 million in revenue. The Ukrainian National Anti-Corruption Bureau claims that the taxes paid on this significant revenue have been used to support the Russian military and “fund the war against Ukraine.”

Xiaomi is currently actively resuming recruitment for its Russian office and has announced the official launch of its flagship smartphones, indicating the company’s intention to fully restore its operations in Russia. Consequently, the Ukrainian government accuses Xiaomi of sponsoring a terrorist state’s military aggression and believes the company will face the reputational and legal consequences of its actions.

As of now, the Ukrainian National Anti-Corruption Bureau has included 21 companies in its list of international war sponsors. Xiaomi’s inclusion in this list comes as a shock to many and highlights the far-reaching effects of the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine on the global tech industry.

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Samsung might soon return to the Russian market: Report

Sean — Fri, 16 Sep 2022 11:32:03 +0000

Following Putin’s invasion into Ukraine, many consumer electronics brand pulled out their operations from Russia. This included the likes of Samsung and Apple, however, it seems that the former might soon be planning on returning to the region soon.

According to a CNN report, despite Apple leaving the region following military tensions, it appears that Russian retailers have still managed to get their hands on the latest iPhone 14 series before the brand has even officially announced the new iPhones in Russia. As of right now, the iPhone 14 is available in the Russian market, but at a pretty hefty price tag. Meanwhile, the South Korean tech giant is planning on a better workaround to sell its products in the same country, which is by simply re-entering the market again.

In other words, the smartphone maker will basically be returning to Russia in just six months after it first left. As per a Reuters report, a Russian news outlet claimed that sources close to the matter have said that Samsung might restart sales as early as next month, October 2022. Although, the company has yet to respond to this report and confirmed this information. Interestingly, this also shows that the latest popular tech will always make its way to various markets, at least for those that can afford it.

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Taiwan ban chip exports to Russia & Belarus over Ukraine invasion

Sean — Fri, 03 Jun 2022 11:33:33 +0000

Taiwan has just imposed a ban of all export of modern chips to Russia and Belarus. The government made the decision due to the ongoing invasion of Ukraine by the Russian forces.

The Taiwanese Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) has shared a list of all high tech goods that will be banned from export to Russia and Belarus earlier this week (Via DigiTimes). The ministry also announced that these new high tech products will also be barred from Belarus since it might help Russia in bypassing these sanctions. So now, companies from these two regions will no longer be able to purchase certain semiconductors products like microprocessors or even microcircuits.

This includes the kind that feature a performance speed of 5 gigaflops or above, have a frequency rate that is higher than 25MHz, an external interconnection with a data transfer rate of 2.5 MB/s or greater, more than 144 pins, or a basic propagation delay time of lower than 0.4 nanoseconds. In simpler terms, Russia and Belarus are basically no longer able to source modern technology that were manufactured in Taiwan.

Apart from modern chipsets, Taiwan will also not sell chip production related equipment to these nations as well. In other words, they can’t source equipment to produce their own chips as well. This includes alignment and exposure equipment for wafer production, scanners, and even scanning electron microscopes.

Watch: Smartphone saves Soldier’s life from a Bullet in Ukraine

Sean — Mon, 25 Apr 2022 09:28:12 +0000

A new video has just surfaced that shows a soldier whose life was saved thanks to his smartphone. The soldier claimed that a stray bullet had hit the smartphone that he was carrying.

For those unaware, Russia and Ukraine are having active military clashes as the former continues its invasion of Ukraine. The situation has become a major international incident. But, it is unclear how things will play out. The short 45 second video was uploaded on YouTube, with the Ukrainian soldier showing his ally his smartphone. Looking at the clip, we can see the remains of a 7.62mm bullet lodged in the handset and the soldier telling his ally, who is shooting the video, that the “smartphone saved my life.”

Notably, the video of the soldier was shot in the trenches where we can also hear sounds of gunfire and explosions in the distance. As of right now, it is unclear which brand the smartphone belonged to, but it appears to be a Samsung model based on the type of protective cover it had.

Interestingly, this is not an isolated event, as smartphones have also saved the lives of people from bullets in the past as well. Back in 2016, a man from Afghanistan claimed that the Nokia 301 saved his life when a bullet lodged into the device (Via 91Mobiles). Similarly in 2012, a Nokia X2 owner also claimed that a stray bullet struck his phone when he was filming a fight between rebels.

Huawei shipped telecom equipment worth $15 million to Russia: Report

Sean — Thu, 21 Apr 2022 10:27:46 +0000

A new report has revealed that Huawei has just delivered a batch of telecommunications based equipment to Russia. The company had shipped these equipments to a Russian telecom operator.

The news arrives from sources close to the matter (Via ITHome). Apparently, the Chinese tech giant shipped telecommunications equipment to Russia’s VimpelCom (AKA VEON). The sources said that the deliveries were made under a previously signed contract, although, a new contract has yet to be approved. A couple of days ago, VimpelCom received a large batch of telecom equipment made by Huawei.

These are apparently worth around 15 million US Dollars, as per people close to the terms of the contract. As per the two sources, the supply contract was lengthy and was initially signed back on February 24. However, sanctions that were imposed caused issues in deliveries. As of right now, various governments across the globe has been against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. The US has banned exports of high tech products in the region, especially technology related to defense, aerospace, and shipbuilding.

Furthermore, these also included the supply of semiconductors, computers, telecommunications, and information security equipment as well. Back in February 2022, the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security had also issued a clarification that the export or transfer of goods to maintain civilian telecommunications infrastructure will be excluded from this rule.

Acer Halts its Business Operations in Russia Amid Current Humanitarian Crisis

Leo Wong De Quan — Fri, 08 Apr 2022 14:48:57 +0000

Acer is a Taiwanese international hardware and electronics corporation, specializing in advanced electronics technology. The company is most well renowned for its laptops internationally, specifically for its Acer Nitro gaming lineup, Acer Swift ultrabook series and Acer Aspire budget lineup.

Over the years, the company has proved to be a strong competitor in the laptop space with its relatively performant laptops at affordable prices and has since expanded globally to regions beyond Asia such as in the United States, Europe, Australia and also Russia.

However, it seems that the brand is halting its operations in one of its key global markets amid the region’s current humanitarian crisis. The region, in particular, is called Russia.

As the situation of the Russian invasion of Ukraine does not seem to be slowing down, Acer recently published a media statement on Twitter stating that the company will be suspending its business operations in Russia. The decision was made in compliance with international trade laws and regulations in mind as several countries and regions have decided to impose sanctions on Russia to denounce the Russian Federation for its foreign special military operations in Ukraine.

pic.twitter.com/kynYDvKXGn

— Acer (@Acer) April 8, 2022

Acer in the statement also mentions that the company is closely following the developments of the war between Russia and Ukraine. The company emphasises that Acer prioritises the safety of its employees, which includes providing assistance to every individual and family affected by the war.

To conclude the statement, Acer extends its warm wishes that peace will be restored as soon as possible. The brand is also working closely with several international agencies and NGOs to provide humanitarian support in the conflict regions.

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