Austrian drone manufacturer Schiebel Aircraft has been charged with “complicity in Myanmar’s terrorist army”. According to the opposition group Justice For Myanmar, “parts and a complete training model for an unmanned aerial vehicle, the Camcopter S-100”, were exported to Myanmar after the coup in February last year.
According to the Upper Austrian People’s Journal, the goods would have gone to the Myanmar arms dealer Miya Win International (MWI) in Yangon via the Russian company Gorizont, which produces Schiebel’s camcopter under license in Rostow am Don. The Camcopter S-100 is an unmanned mini helicopter that can be equipped with cameras or weapons for civilian and military use. MWI is an arms supplier to the military junta that Britain sanctioned in March.
Fragments from the Import Genius trade database, which is based on information from the authorities, available to the “Volksblatt” document a delivery from Schiebel to Gorizont for February 8, 2021. Some of the camera components went to MWI on February 19. “Inexplicable for Schiebel,” said a spokeswoman for Schiebl in Vienna at the request of the daily. Before the EU embargo, Camcopter S-100 were delivered to Myanmar “as part of infrastructure modernization”. Due to contractual provisions, the name of the buyer cannot be mentioned. At the end of 2018, the Myanmar army itself expressed doubts about the purely civilian use of the aircraft with the public presentation of a camcopter in Yangon.
Deals with Russian company ended
According to the spokeswoman, if camcopter parts supplied to Gorizont ended up at MWI after Schiebel’s coup, this would be a breach of contract by the Russians. “The use of the products supplied by Schiebel to Gorizont is expressly limited to the territory of the Russian Federation and excludes further export,” she emphasized. However, as a result of the war in Ukraine, cooperation with Russia has ended anyway. Schiebel has terminated the business relationship with Gorizont, while at the same time assuring that “it cannot be ruled out that the Russian military will or can use Schiebel products, not even in Ukraine”.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
