Ukraine diplomat slams Apple decision to show Crimea as part of Russia

Ukraine’s top diplomat has criticized Apple’s decision to display the Crimean Peninsula as part of Russia on certain versions of Apple Maps.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko tweeted that “iPhones are great products” but called on Apple to “please, please, stick to high-tech and entertainment.”

“Global politics is not your strong side,” he wrote in a tweet Wednesday, including the hashtag #CrimeaIsUkraine.

IPhones are great products. Seriously, though, @Apple, please, please, stick to high-tech and entertainment. Global politics is not your strong side. #CrimeaIsUkraine

— Vadym Prystaiko (@VPrystaiko) November 27, 2019

Let me explain in your terms, @Apple. Imagine you’re crying out that your design & ideas, years of work & piece of your heart are stolen by your worst enemy but then smb ignorant doesn’t give a damn about your pain. That’s how it feels when you call #Crimea a  land.

— Vadym Prystaiko (@VPrystaiko) November 27, 2019

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Ukrainian officials expressed frustration after reports emerged this week that Apple had updated its Apple Maps and Weather apps to display the annexed territory of Crimea as part of Russia when viewed on devices from Russia.

The BBC noted that the move came after pressure from Moscow, with Russian officials pressing Apple earlier this year to change the way Crimea appeared on its Apple Maps and Weather apps.

The chairman of the security and anti-corruption committee in the Duma, the lower house of Russia’s parliament, said in a statement on the government’s website that the move to no longer label the territory as part of Ukraine brought Apple in line with Russian law.

“There is no going back,” committee Chairman Vasily Piskaryov said this week, according to the BBC. “Today, with Apple, the situation is closed — we have received everything we wanted.”

The outlet reported that Google Maps also shows Crimea as part of Ukraine when viewed from Russia, with those changes reportedly happening in March. When viewed from Ukraine, however, the maps from Google don’t show clear borders in the area, according to the BBC.

The U.S. and much of the international community have not recognized Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea, a move that drew international condemnation and sanctions.