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Apple reportedly blocks app developers in Crimea following government sanctions

Adhering to government sanctions issued by the United States and European Commission in December, TechCrunch reports that Apple has started emailing notice of termination letters to registered developers in the Crimea region of Ukraine. Effective immediately, developers in the region cannot create or publish apps on the App Store and will be unable to access the developer portal, according to the reports.

The decision follows an ongoing dispute between the United States and Russia over the Russian occupation of Crimea, an area that is internationally recognized as Ukraine territory. If and when the sanctions are lifted, developers in Crimea would presumably regain access to the developer portal and the ability to publish apps.

The full-text letter from Russian-language website Habrahabr and Twitter:

This letter serves as notice of termination of the Registered Apple Developer Agreement (the “RAD Agreement”) between you and Apple, effective immediately.

Apple may terminate your status as a Registered Apple Developer at any time at its sole discretion under the RAD Agreement. The new sanctions on the Crimea Region announced by the US Government on December 19, 2014 and announced by the European Commission on December 18, 2014 prohibit the continuation of the RAD Agreement between you and Apple. For more information, please review Executive Order 13685 and the European Commission notice.

We would like to remind you of your obligations with regard to all software and other confidential information that you obtained from Apple as a Registered Apple Developer. You must promptly cease all use of and destroy such materials and comply with all the other termination obligations set forth in the RAD Agreement.

Sincerely,
Apple Inc.

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Comments

  1. This is punishing the innocents whose land is being occupied by Russia in the first place. I’ve had a few customers in that part of the Ukraine, in fact some orders being fulfilled just as the conflict started heating up last year. It’s a bad situation to put it mildly.

    • I’m crimean iOS developer, and the part about “punishing the innocents” is fully correct. But please, you should avoid words like “crimea occupied by russia”, because it was our freedom of choice that Russia gave us, and crimean people made it’s choice – to join Russia (or, to be more correct, get back to Russia).
      Sorry for politics…

      And yes, my account is blocked too.

      • Edison Wrzosek - 9 years ago

        Sorry, but there is no such thing as freedom of choice when it’s provided by the barrel of a gun, being wielded by an ex-KGB power-hungry communist. Crimea was OCCUPIED by Russia illegally, and hope Russia is forced to relinquish control, and hand it back to Ukraine.

      • gserraes ッ (@gserraes) - 9 years ago

        Sure I’m bad at these kind of topics but, a land, region or territory that belongs to a recognized State as Ukraine, the parliament or congress must first approve or authorize the referendum you had, thing that never happened and if Russia acted differently, can not have that region annexed unless the referendum is legal and processed thru the State in accordance. Take for example Scotland, it’s referendum was fully legal, because it was approved by the UK parliament, however they chose to stay with the UK.

        Sorry for the politics.

      • The people I communicated with there were not interested in joining Russia to put it mildly. I also have many customers and acquaintances in Russia, so I’m not trying to disparage any nationality here at all.

        If there was no public referendum and a military force was used to subdue or punish those who oppose a change, it’s not really a choice. And if control is kept by forces from an external origin or influence, it’s an occupation, whether it’s welcomed by some people or not.

      • PMZanetti - 9 years ago

        No country or government can give you freedom. They can only take it away.

      • ateterine - 9 years ago

        And all of you are such a knowledgeable politic analysts how?
        Just a reminder that this is 9to5mac, not 9to5politics. Keep your opinion to yourself please.

  2. philboogie - 9 years ago

    Nice telco operator this Pavlo has!

  3. Absolute bullshit.