Under pressure, Apple shows annexed Crimea as Russia on apps

US tech giant Apple has complied with Moscow's demands to show Crimea, annexed from Ukraine in 2014, as Russian territory on its apps, lawmakers said Wednesday.

The Black Sea peninsula and its largest cities of Sevastopol and Simferopol are now displayed as Russian territory on Apple's maps and weather apps when used in Russia.

Crimea does not appear to be part of any country when these apps are used in France.

"Crimea and Sevastopol now appear on Apple devices as Russian territory," parliament's lower house, the State Duma, said in a statement. Russia treats the naval port city of Savastopol as a separate region.

Russia and Apple had been in talks over the last few months, with the US giant initially trying to show Crimea as undefined territory and removing any mention of Ukraine.

The State Duma released a statement following a meeting between Vasily Piskaryov, chairman of State Duma security and anti-corruption committee, and Apple's Russia representative, Darya Yermolina.

In the statement, Piskaryov praised the US company, saying it had complied with the Russian Constitution.

He said Russia was open for "dialogue and constructive cooperation with foreign companies," stressing however that Russian authorities would remain vigilant.

Russian lawmakers will monitor "issues concerning the protection of the Russian constitution and our country's sovereignty from outside interference," Piskaryov added.

Apple did not immediately release a comment on Wednesday.

Another global tech giant, Google, does not identify Crimea as belonging to either Russia or Ukraine on its maps.

It however uses the Russian, rather than Ukrainian, spelling of Crimean place names on its maps in Russia, as well as drawing a line to show the de facto border dividing Crimea from the rest of Ukraine.

Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 in a move condemned by most of the global community. The seizure of the peninsula helped spark a separatist uprising in eastern Ukraine that has claimed more than 13,000 lives so far.

pop-as/am/wai

APPLE INC.

GOOGLE

Related Links
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com

Tweet

Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.

SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly

paypal only

SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once

credit card or paypal

China condemns US navy sail-by in disputed waters
Beijing (AFP) Nov 22, 2019
China on Friday accused the US of "provocative" conduct after two US warships sailed near islands claimed by Beijing this week, adding to tensions between the global powers. The US Navy regularly conducts "freedom of navigation operations" in the disputed South China Sea, where China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan have competing claims. The US Navy said the USS Gabrielle Giffords littoral combat ship sailed near Mischief Reef in the Spratly Islands Wednesday, and the USS ... read more