We are really looking into all the types of things that help Russia to wage this war to put them on the sanctions list,” Kallas told reporters. “Even the consoles for video games, because apparently these are the ones that they operate drones with.

From HOTAS flight sticks to gamepads themselves, if it can process an input it’s probably being used somewhere for something other than making Mario jump. Now, the EU is proposing a ban on video game hardware sales from the bloc to Russia to stop it from using kit as weapons of warfare.

Ukraine took Russia by surprise when it captured 500 miles in the Kursk region in the summer of 2024 before Moscow retaliated.