We don’t even hear them anymore,” Zhenya chuckles from under first-person-view (FPV) goggles branded with the U.S. company “Fat Shark.” Zhenya and his co-developer for DragoDrones, or DCU, Maksym, are testing a stack of small FPV drones in a field in Kharkiv Oblast.

China’s escalating conflict with the US over trade is now extending to the drones that have become a vital part of Ukraine’s defense.

According to Western officials, China intends to expand export restrictions on components used in the production of drones from the beginning of next year.