Matrix Report
In Apple’s latest update, Crimea was placed as a territory of the Russian Federation. For decades now, Crimea was a controversial issue between Russia and Ukraine, after which Russia accepted the annexation of Crimea. The backlash and protests mostly came from Ukraine, where the move was seen highly controversial.
Russia takes it as a proud moment, where parliament members in Russia have claimed they lobbied Apple to place several Crimean locations as a part of Russia.
Ukrainian diplomats spoke up on several platforms against this move. Vadym Prystaiko, Ukraine’s foreign Minister stated, via twitter, “Let me explain in your terms @Apple, imagine you’re crying out that your design and ideas, years of work & piece of your heart are stolen by your worst enemy but then somebody ignorant doesn’t give a damn about your pain. That’s how it feels when you call #Crimea a [Russian] land.”
This is not the first time Apple has done something of the kind. Apple has, in the past, come under certain governmental pressures to bend geopolitical issues in a certain direction. It previously removed the Taiwanese flag in their emojis for the Hong Kong users as well.
After 2014’s Annexation, the EU and the US placed sanctions on Russia, where they used the force of their military to make them secede from Ukraine. This issue is highly controversial, and Ukraine’s foreign Minister put it best when he stated, addressing Apple, “Iphones are great products. Seriously, though, @Apple, please, please, stick to high-tech and entertainment. Global politics is not your strong side. #CrimeaisUkraine.”
