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Microsoft has joined the growing list of companies that have restricted their operations in Russia in response to Moscow's military offensive in Ukraine.
It will suspend all new sales of Microsoft products and services in Russia, the Washington-based technology company announced on Friday.
The company said it is co-ordinating with the governments of the US, the UK and the EU and is stopping many aspects of its business in Russia in compliance with a recent series of sanctions.
“We are horrified, angered and saddened by the images and news coming from the war in Ukraine,” said Brad Smith, president and vice chairman of the company.
“We will take additional steps as this situation continues to evolve … our single most impactful area of work almost certainly is the protection of Ukraine’s cyber security.
“We continue to help cyber security officials in Ukraine defend against Russian attacks, including most recently against a major Ukrainian broadcaster.”
Several international companies — including oil majors such as Shell, ExxonMobil and BP, car makers Toyota, Honda and General Motors as well as technology titans such as Apple and Meta — have suspended or limited business ties with Russia amid the military conflict.
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Sony's game division and Nintendo said they have suspended shipments of software and hardware to Russia. Nintendo said it is suspending shipping all products to Russia "for the foreseeable future... due to considerable volatility surrounding the logistics of shipping and distributing physical goods." AFP -
Rio Tinto said it "is in the process of terminating all commercial relationships it has with any Russian business". It has an alumina joint venture with Moscow-based United Rusal International. Reuters -
McDonald's is temporarily closing all 847 of its restaurants in Russia. AFP -
Starbucks is suspending all business activity in Russia, including shipments of its products and cafes run by licencees. AFP -
Coca-Cola is suspending sales in Russia. Coca-Cola said its business in Russia and Ukraine contributed about 1 to 2 per cent of the company's net operating revenue in 2021. Reuters -
PepsiCo is suspending sales of its sodas in Russia. It said it would continue to sell daily essentials, such as milk and other dairy offerings, baby formula and baby food, in Russia. Getty Images / AFP -
Yum Brands, behind KFC and Pizza Hut, also said it was suspending investment in Russia. Reuters -
Toyota is halting production at its plant in St Petersburg, and will halt vehicle shipments to Russia. Reuters -
Ikea said it would suspend its activities in Russia and Belarus, affecting nearly 15,000 employees, 17 stores and three production sites. AFP -
Honda will stop exports of cars and motorcycles to Russia. EPA -
Jaguar Land Rover has paused the delivery of its cars to Russia due to "trading challenges". -
Airbus is suspending sale of parts and support services to airline customers in Russia. Reuters -
Boeing has suspended major operations in Moscow and temporarily closed its office in Kyiv. It is also suspending parts, maintenance and technical support services for Russian airlines. Reuters -
Nike has made merchandise purchases on its website and app unavailable in Russia as it cannot guarantee delivery of goods to customers in the country, an update on the sportswear maker's website showed. Bloomberg -
German sportswear company Puma has stopped deliveries to Russia, but its 100 stores are open. Getty Images -
Shell is to exit all its Russian operations, including a major liquefied natural gas plant. The company also plans to end its involvement in the Nord Stream II gas pipeline from Russia to Germany. PA -
BP is exiting its 19.75 per cent shareholding in Russian oil giant Rosneft after pressure from the UK government. BP has operated in Russia for more than 30 years. Reuters -
ExxonMobil will cease operations in Russia and refrain from making new investments in the country. It holds a 30 per cent stake, alongside Rosneft, Japan's Sodeco and India's ONGC Videsh, in the Sakhalin Island oil and gas fields in Russia’s far east. Its business in the country is valued at more than $4 billion. AFP -
Eni said it would withdraw from the Blue Stream gas pipeline linking Russia to Turkey, in which it has a 50 per cent stake. The company controls the gas pipeline -- which links the two countries via the Black Sea -- equally with Russian energy giant Gazprom. Reuters -
British Gas owner Centrica has said it will exit gas supply agreements with its Russian counterparts, including Gazprom. Centrica said it currently has a medium-term contract with Gazprom Marketing and Trading, the Russian energy company's UK entity, through which gas can be sourced from the open market. Reuters -
Norwegian energy group Equinor said it will start the process of divesting from its joint ventures in Russia. Reuters -
HSBC said it was starting to wind down relations with a host of Russian banks including the second-largest, VTB, one of those targeted by sanctions, a memo seen by Reuters showed. AFP -
Volkswagen suspended deliveries of cars to dealers in Russia. 'Deliveries are to resume as soon as the effects of the sanctions imposed by the European Union and the United States have been clarified', a VW representative said. AP -
Swedish automaker Volvo Cars said it would suspend car shipments to the Russian market until further notice, becoming the first international car maker to do so. Supplied -
GM said it would suspend all vehicle exports to Russia until further notice. The Detroit company does not have plants in Russia, only sells about 3,000 vehicles annually in the country and has limited supply-chain exposure. AFP -
Danish shipping giant Maersk said that it would stop taking new non-essential orders to and from Russia, owing to sanctions imposed over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. AFP -
Singapore-headquartered container shipping company Ocean Network Express has suspended bookings to and from Russia. Reuters -
AerCap Holdings, the world's biggest plane lessor with about 5 per cent of its fleet leased to Russian airlines, said it will stop trading with Russian customers. Reuters -
US-based United Parcel Service said it is halting delivery services to Russia and Ukraine. Bloomberg -
FedEx also said it is temporarily suspending inbound and outbound services to Ukraine and inbound services to Russia until further notice. AP -
Microsoft said it would remove Russian state-owned media outlet RT's mobile apps from its Windows App store and ban ads on Russian state-sponsored media. Reuters -
Google has barred RT and other Russian channels from receiving money for ads on websites, apps and YouTube videos. Reuters -
German heavy-goods vehicle group Daimler Truck has said it will cease its co-operation with Russian lorry-maker Kamaz. AFP -
Motorcycle maker Harley-Davidson has suspended shipments of its bikes to Russia. Pictured, Russian President Vladimir Putin. Reuters -
Facebook owner Meta Platforms has restricted access to accounts run by Sputnik and RT in the EU. Reuters -
Apple has paused all product sales and limited the functionality of other services in Russia. Reuters
Since the start of offensive, Microsoft has acted against Russia's targeting of more than 20 Ukrainian government, IT and financial sector organisations, it said.
The company has also acted against cyber attacks on “civilian sites".
“We stand with Ukraine in calling for the restoration of peace, respect for Ukraine’s sovereignty and the protection of its people,” Mr Smith said.
Last month, before the start of Russian offensive, Microsoft’s threat intelligence centre detected a new round of cyber attacks directed against Ukraine’s digital infrastructure.
“We immediately advised the Ukrainian government about the situation, including our identification of the use of a new malware package and provided technical advice on steps to prevent the malware’s success,” Mr Smith said.
The US and its allies in Europe have imposed a host of sanctions on Moscow, while some Russian banks have been barred from the Swift global financial network.
Some countries closed their airspace to Russian aircraft, and the US Justice Department is also seeking to seize yachts, luxury apartments and private jets belonging to wealthy Russians with ties to President Vladimir Putin.
