Crimea Desk, RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service
KYIV – Apple is showing Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula as being part of Russia on some of its apps, a move that lawmakers in Moscow hailed as correcting an earlier “error” by the U.S. technology giant but one that is sure to anger Kyiv.
However, the display of Ukraine’s Black Sea peninsula as Russian territory on Apple Maps and Weather on November 27 appeared to occur only for users in Russia. When using the apps from the United States, Ukraine and in parts of Europe, no international borders are shown around the peninsula.
The same neutral appearance occurs when using Google Maps, which shows Crimea as neither Russian nor Ukrainian.
Russia took control of Crimea in March 2014 after sending in troops, seizing key facilities, and staging a referendum dismissed as illegal by at least 100 countries.
“We make every effort to objectively depict the disputed regions, and where we have local versions of Google Maps, we follow local legislation when displaying names and borders,” a Google spokesperson told Tech Crunch magazine.
The Ukrainian Embassy in Washington told RFE/RL that it had sent a letter to Apple explaining the situation in Crimea and demanding that it correct the peninsula’s designation.
It also said on Twitter that Ukrainians will not “be giving any thanks to Apple this Thanksgiving! So let’s all remind Apple that #CrimeaIsUkraine and it is under Russian occupation – not its sovereignty.”
“Apple, please, please, stick to high-tech and entertainment. Global politics is not your strong side,” Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Vadym Prystaiko tweeted.
“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 [somebody] ignorant doesn’t give a damn about your pain. That’s how it feels when you call Crimea a [Russian] land,” he wrote in a separate tweet.
The U.S. State Department issued a statement on November 27 reaffirming “our unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” without mentioning Crimea or the mapping controversy.
Vasily Piskarev, who chairs the Russian State Duma’s Committee on Security and Corruption Control, welcomed Apple’s move, saying: “They have brought [their services] in line with Russian law.” He told reporters: “The error with displaying Crimean cities on the weather app has been eliminated.”
“With this action, the company has demonstrated a wish to preserve and develop its positions in the Russian market,” according to Leonid Levin, head of the Duma’s Information Policy Committee.
It was not immediately clear when the decision was made to include Crimea as part of Russia on the apps. The State Duma said in a statement that the change was made following a meeting between Mr. Piskarev and Apple’s representative in Russia, Daria Yermolina.
Russia and Apple had been in talks over the past few months over the matter. The U.S. company initially attempted to show Crimea as undefined territory by removing any mention of Ukraine.
Earlier, the Russian Duma gave Apple a deadline of April 25, and then extended it until May 10 to “eliminate inaccuracies in displaying the geographical location of Crimea and Sevastopol in the application.”
Competitor Google Maps has designated Crimea differently over the years depending on the user’s location, listing it as Russian for Russian users and Ukrainian for most others.
Mr. Piskarev in June said Google had complied with Moscow’s requirement that Crimea be designated to users of the Internet in Russia as Russian territory, forestalling plans to penalize the company for violating federal law.
With reporting by RFE/RL’s Russian Service, Todd Prince in Washington, AFP, AP, Reuters, BBC and Interfax.
Apple to re-evaluate policy on mapping ‘disputed borders’
RFE/RL
Apple says it will re-evaluate how it identifies “disputed borders” after receiving criticism for displaying Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula as part of Russia on maps and weather apps for Russian users.
Apple spokeswoman Trudy Muller told Reuters on November 29 that the U.S. technology giant was “taking a deeper look at how we handle disputed borders.”
Ms. Muller said Apple made the change for Russian users because of a new law that went into effect inside Russia and that it had not made any changes to its maps outside of the country.
“We review international law as well as relevant U.S. and other domestic laws before making a determination in labeling on our maps and make changes if required by law,” she told Reuters.
Ms. Muller added that Apple “may make changes in the future as a result” of its re-evaluation of the policy, without being specific.
With reporting by Reuters and the Crimea Desk of RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service.
Copyright 2019, RFE/RL Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington DC 20036; www.rferl.org (see https://www.rferl.org/a/apple-ukraine-apps-crimea-russia/30295639.html and https://www.rferl.org/a/apple-reevaluates-map-policy-crimea-ukraine-russia-dispute/30300084.html)