Chinese ZTE base stations continued to operate in russian-occupied territories of Ukraine until December 2024 - media

Despite the war and sanctions, China continues to supply products to the aggressor country. Thus, a large supplier of equipment for mobile operators in Ukraine - the Chinese telecommunications company ZTE, continues to cooperate with russian mobile operators in the occupied territories of Ukraine, in particular, in the Zaporizhzhia Region, writes the Fakty publication.

This is evidenced by a report by the russian TASS agency dated December 2, 2024, citing the so-called "minister" of digital development appointed by the occupation authorities of the Zaporizhzhia Region, Grigory Prokhvatilov.

This Gauleiter claims that in 2024, 989 new mobile communication base stations were supposedly installed in the russian-occupied territory of the Zaporizhzhia Region, and their total number now amounts to 2,969.

"In addition to building new stations, we are also modernizing existing ones. Previously, base stations on ZTE brand equipment operated in the Zaporizhzhia Region. Now everyone is switching to new modern equipment, including Chinese brands, which allows for better network control, remote problem detection, and in some cases automatic network reconfigurations without going to the site," Prokhvatilov noted.

Such a message may indicate that with the beginning of the occupation, ZTE base stations in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine were not turned off. In addition, their continued operation until the end of 2024 without the regular issuance of relevant licenses to mobile operators by ZTE as the manufacturer would be impossible.

Recall that ZTE is a Chinese company that manufactures telecommunications equipment and mobile phones. 51.8% of the shares belong to the PRC. At the same time, 31.5% of shares are traded on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, and another 16.7% on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.