Since February 24, when Russian President Vladimir Putin officially declared what he calls a “special military operation” in eastern Ukraine, world leaders, international organisations, and companies have been keeping an eye on Moscow’s every move.
International sanctions have been imposed on Russia as a result of its invasion of Ukraine, and a stream of corporations from all sectors have terminated connections with Moscow. Multinational corporations have banded together in response to the military assault on Ukraine, threatening to cut ties with Russia or taking a stand in support of Ukrainian refugees.
Measures were taken by the United States and Europe, including an attempt to bar some Russian banks from using the SWIFT payment network and sanctions against Russia’s Central Bank, which have already sent the rouble plunging by more than 30 per cent.
Apart from government authorities, several private companies have made moves against the Kremlin’s actions and it looks like the list is continuously growing.
Here are the names of those top companies that have taken bold steps after Russia invaded Ukraine.
Apple: The tech giant’s name was recently added to the list. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the iPhone maker ceased product sales in the nation, saying it stands with all of the people who are suffering as a result of the aggression. The company has announced that it has halted exporting products into the country’s sales channel last week, in preparation for a sales halt. It’s also banning the RT News and Sputnik News apps from App Stores outside of Russia and in Ukraine, it’s disabled traffic and live-incident capabilities as a safety and precautionary step for the country’s inhabitants.
ExxonMobil: The Texas-based company has announced that it will exit a joint venture off the coast of Sakhalin Island in Russia’s Far East and will not invest in other projects in the country as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. As per the company, this attack violates Ukraine’s territorial integrity and puts its people in danger.
Visa and Mastercard: Both Mastercard and Visa have stated that Russian banks will be barred from their networks. To aid individuals affected by the invasion, Mastercard said it will donate to Save the Children, the Red Cross and the company’s employee support fund, while Visa has announced a $2 million donation to UNICEF’s United States Fund.
Facebook/Meta: Meta executives said that posts from Russian state media are no longer being recommended to users by Facebook’s algorithm and this will soon be the case with Instagram as well. This comes days after Facebook said it had restricted access to Russian state media accounts in Ukraine, blocked Russian state media from running ads and earning money from their accounts on the platform and removed posts related to a disinformation campaign targeting Ukraine.
Twitter: The microblogging platform said that tweets sharing material from Russian official media accounts will be labelled and that it will temporarily stop ads in Ukraine and Russia to guarantee essential public safety information gets elevated and ads don’t detract from it.
YouTube: The platform blocked channels run by Russian state-funded outlets Russia Today and Sputnik News across Europe on Tuesday, just days after it temporarily demonetised RT and other channels on Saturday, preventing them from earning money through ads on their videos, and restricting access to these channels in Ukraine.
Nike Inc: It has made merchandise purchases on its website and app in Russia inoperable, signalling that it cannot guarantee delivery of goods to Russian clients.
Adidas: The German sportswear retailer put a stop to its partnership with the Russian Football Union, joining a growing number of sports bodies in severing ties with Russian-affiliated teams or companies.
General Motors: In response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, General Motors announced a temporary halt to vehicle deliveries to Russia. In Russia, the Detroit automaker sells roughly 3,000 automobiles and has no manufacturing facilities there.
Ford: The automobile giant said in a statement that the company “is deeply concerned about the invasion of Ukraine and the resultant threats to peace and stability”. So it was suspending its commercial van JV in Russia until further notice, said the company.
Walt-Disney: Given the invasion of Ukraine and the tragic humanitarian crisis, the Walt Disney Company, which owns Marvel Studios, 20th Century Studios, Pixar, and other film properties, announced that it is pausing the release of theatrical films in Russia, including the highly anticipated Pixar film Turning Red.
BP: The oil giant divested a roughly 20 per cent stake in the Russian oil company Rosneft and two BP-nominated Rosneft board members resigned immediately, with BP chair Helge Lund calling Russia’s attack on Ukraine an “act of aggression” and saying BP’s involvement with Rosneft, a state-owned enterprise, cannot continue.
Shell: It said that it will discontinue all joint ventures with Gazprom, the Russian state-owned oil company. Moreover, the company announced that it will sell its 27.5 per cent investment in a Sakhalin-II liquefied natural gas facility and its 50 per cent stake in Salym Petroleum Development.
Airbnb: It said this week that it will provide 100,000 migrants fleeing Ukraine with free, short-term lodging, which will be paid for by the company and contributions.
Russia has received such a strong response from several companies all throughout the world. For that matter, even sports organisations like FIFA and UEFA have taken bold decisions against Moscow. Similarly, the International Olympic Committee has suggested that Russian and Belarussian athletes be barred from partaking in international sporting events.
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