Russia’s jam-resistant drones run on a Chinese modem no one has sanctioned
The XK-F358 mesh radio that keeps Russia's Geran and Gerbera drones flying past Ukrainian jamming sells openly online from about $8,100 a unit, and it appears on no US, EU, UK or Ukrainian sanctions list.
A Chinese-made mesh radio modem used in Russia's jam-resistant strike drones evades Western and Ukrainian sanctions, according to OSINT group Frontelligence Insight. The XK-F358 modem, made by Shenzhen Xingkai Technology Co., Ltd., remains on the market and is not listed in any sanctions regimes targeting China's drone suppliers.
Its unique design allows it to function despite losing up to 80% of its nodes, making conventional jamming efforts ineffective. While sanctions have been imposed on Chinese suppliers of drone engines, navigation receivers, motors, cameras, and chips, Shenzhen Xingkai remains untouched. The modem's use has been integrated onto Russia's Shahed-136/Geran-2 strike drones since July 2025 and has become a standard component by early September 2025.
Written by urgent.news from Euromaidan Press's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
