UK bans export of video game controllers to Russia to hinder attack drone pilots

The British government announced on Thursday it is banning all exports of video game controllers to Russia to prevent them from being used to pilot drones on the frontlines in Ukraine.

In a sanctions package including more than 150 new measures which come into force today, the government said it was closing loopholes being exploited by the Kremlin.

“Putin thought he could use British markets to boost his war effort, buying harmless goods and turning them into tools of war — but the UK is exposing and acting on this sinister trade,” said Minister Stephen Doughty. “Today’s action clamps down on Russia’s sneaky trading and deprives Putin of the goods he desperately needs to fight his barbaric war.”

Doughty singled out video game controllers in his remarks, saying their export to Russia would be banned outright and “gaming consoles will no longer be repurposed to kill in Ukraine.”

The sanctions follow a similar ban from the European Union earlier this year covering joysticks and gaming console controllers.

Short-range drones are being used to target Ukrainian civilians “in cars, on buses and on public streets” according to United Nations monitors, who have described the weaponized technology as posing “one of the deadliest threats to civilians in frontline areas.”

Doughty added that Britain would also be “shutting down the sale of sophisticated software used to cash in on new oil and gas reserves,” helping to cut off Russia’s energy revenues and “drain Putin’s war chest.” Until now, he said, British expertise has been “used to pour fresh fuel into Russia’s war machine.”

Other trade measures include prohibiting the export of specialist technology used by Russia to produce weaponry, alongside other chemicals, electronics, machinery and metals that weren’t already covered under existing sanctions.

The sanctions come amid an apparent reversal in support for Ukraine from the United States.

While British sanctions on Russia have often been imposed independently of the EU, they are usually accompanied by similar actions from the U.S. As of press time, no similar restrictions had been announced.

U.S. President Donald Trump criticised President Volodymyr Zelensky just hours before Russia killed at least eight people in overnight strikes on Kyiv and injured dozens more. Ukrainian authorities said 215 drones and missiles had been launched against the capital.

During his first term in office, Trump was impeached for attempting to use U.S. military support for Ukraine to coerce Zelensky into investigating the son of his political rival Joe Biden.

Trump has touted the lifting of sanctions on Russia’s energy sector as a way of encouraging the Kremlin to come to the negotiating table and is advancing a peace plan that makes considerable concessions to the Kremlin.

In a post on his own social media platform Truth Social on Thursday, Trump wrote: “I am not happy with the Russian strikes on KYIV. Not necessary, and very bad timing. Vladimir, STOP! 5000 soldiers a week are dying. Lets get the Peace Deal DONE!”

While the British government has avoided publicly expressing any disagreements with Washington over its diminishing support for Kyiv, the mood in Westminster is more resolutely in Ukraine’s favour.

Neil Holland, who heads the British delegation to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, told a gathering on Thursday: “Russia’s continued attacks against Ukraine are another stark reminder that President Putin has not abandoned his goal of subjugating Ukraine.

“For this reason, the UK, alongside our partners and allies, will continue to provide Ukraine with the military support it needs to defend its citizens,” Holland said. “And we stand ready to apply further pressure on Russia to hinder its ability to wage this war of aggression.”