The majority of countries which sanctioned Russia following its 2014 annexation of Crimea began imposing additional sanctions to punish Russia for invading all of Ukraine — a move for which Russian President Vladimir Putin had long prepared.[3] Many companies were not impacted by sanctions against Russia but ruled in favor of cutting ties with the country either due to the public pressure or in protest of the Russian government's actions, or both.[4][5] Ukrainian institutions have stated that the need for these measures is urgent.[6]
The response can be broadly divided into a "cultural boycott", aimed at amplifying the international condemnation of the invasion, and an "economic boycott", which is designed to make the war effort less sustainable.[7][8] As a result of the latter, several commentators have warned of an unprecedented economic collapse in Russia's future, citing a 30% drop in the ruble's value, a 20% rise in interest rates and a 1% GDP expansion down from 1.7%.[9] Analyses by multiple firms project year end GDP contraction of at least 5% and inflation of 15%.[10] Some of the most critical blows to Russian infrastructure have been the loss of access to the SWIFT payment system and limitations on Russia's ability to export oil.[11]US SenatorBernie Sanders has stated that this crisis should influence energy policy more broadly in order to deter "authoritarian petrostates".[12] While Shell plc has been noted for relinquishing its stake in Gazprom, it was also criticised for buying a cargo of discounted Russian crude oil.[13] The next day, following public outcry, Shell defended the purchase as a short term necessity, but also announced that it intends to reduce such purchases and put the profits from them into a fund that will go towards humanitarian aid to Ukraine.[14] As of 10 March, half of the ten largest international companies with business ties to Russia announced that they are withdrawing or closing their operations; and the number of companies that have done so is over 300.[15]
Some of the largest snack and fast food companies have faced criticism for continuing to do business in Russia and Belarus.[16][17][18][19][20]Anthony Pompliano has defended cryptocurrency trading platforms for not participating in the boycott, stating "there is an incredible amount of inhumanity that goes into the decision to cut off the average citizen from the global financial system. What was their crime?"[21] Critics of the Israeli government have pointed out that several American politicians who support isolating Russia economically previously campaigned for and passed anti-BDS laws punishing boycotts of Israel.[22][23][24]
The cultural side of the boycott has focused on reducing the number of entertainment products available to people in Russia. These include films and albums but also live televised events that are hosted in Western countries.[25] Yasmeen Serhan has commented that nationalistic sentiment, which has historically benefited Putin's regime, will be undermined by Russia's exclusion from sporting events.[8] The banning of Russia and Belarus from the Olympics has drawn comparisons to the athletic boycott of apartheid South Africa. According to Olympic historians David Wallechinsky and Bill Mallon, the decision can be considered a turning point when compared to past leniency over the state-sponsored doping programme in Russia or the attempted abduction of Krystsina Tsimanouskaya by Belarus.[26][27]
In addition to cancelling planned appearances in Russia, several entertainment organisations with Russian members began to scrutinise their past support for Putin. Some of these celebrities refused to condemn the war but others lost their contracts because they did so without mentioning Putin by name. A statement by Alex Ovechkin, for example, called for peace in general and mentioned that his family members in Russia were also in danger.[28] However, Czech former Detroit Red Wings and Ottawa Senators goaltender Dominik Hašek responded to Ovechkin and criticized him for his past support of Putin, stating "What!? Not only an alibist, a chicken shit, but also a liar!", while also calling on the NHL to suspend all Russian players.[29] One musician who referred to his family's safety when condemning the war was Alexander Malofeev. The Vancouver Recital Society, which had begun requiring this of all Russian performers, responded that Malofeev's statement was not sufficient to allow his concert to go ahead.[30]
Despite ongoing sanctions, 47 of the world's biggest 200 companies still have not left Russia, particularly energy companies remain invested there. U.K. energy giant Shell and Japanese trading firms Mitsui and Mitsubishi hold double-digit stakes in the Sakhalin-2 oil and natural gas project. On July 1, 2022, Putin signed a decree to allow the government to seize the Sakhalin-2 oil and natural gas project but further attempts to formally nationalize the assets of international firms were paused when the bill did not make it through the State Duma before the 2022 summer recess. According to Western analysts, remaining companies have experienced expropriation and nationalization pressures, but officially Russia has denied that it is interested in such actions. In August 2022, Russia's trade and industry minister Denis Manturov stated, "we are not interested in the nationalization of enterprises or their removal.”[31][32]
After pressure from Alaskan legislators, the Alaska Permanent Fund announced it will not purchase any new Russian securities and will look to divest its Russian portfolio, consisting of US$63m in fixed income, US$153m in public equities and US$2.7m in private equity.
American Express announced it had suspended all operations in Russia. All American Express cards will not work at merchants or ATMs in Russia and cards issued by Russian institutions will not work outside of the country. American Express stated its business in Russia is "small".
Australia's Future Fund announced it would dump all Russian assets, worth A$200m, while the New South Wales government would dump A$75m of Russian assets from its NSW Generations Fund.
Coinbase blocked 25,000 wallets belonging to sanctioned individuals. It also stated the use of "sophisticated blockchain analytics" to identify accounts indirectly linked to banned users.
Western Australia's Government Employees Superannuation Board (GESB) stated it would reduce its exposure to 20 Russian companies, including Gazprom, Rosneft, Sberbank and Lukoil.
The Government Pension Fund of Norway announced it will divest its Russian assets from 47 companies, including Sberbank, Gazprom and Lukoil, worth 25 billion crowns in 2021. However, it later stated its value is likely worth only 2.5 billion crowns and they were "pretty much written off".
HESTA announced it had sold Russian assets from its Sustainable Growth super fund and it does not intend to reinvest in Russian sovereign bonds and other Russian assets in the future.
JPMorgan Chase announced it was actively unwinding business and would not pursue any new business in Russia. JPMorgan had fewer than 200 employees located in Russia.
Mastercard blocks transactions linked to multiple Russian institutions on 1 March. It further announced on 5 March that all cards issued by Russian banks will not work anywhere inside or outside of Russia, at Russian merchants and ATMs. Russia made up about 4% of Mastercard's net revenue for 2021.
The National Employment Savings Trust told its fund managers to sell all existing Russian shares and government bonds as soon as possible and pledged not to buy any more.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed an executive order on 27 February, directing all New York State agencies and authorities to review and divest public funds from Russia. On 2 March, the state's Department of Financial Services expedited the procurement of blockchain analytics technology, allowing it to detect exposure of virtual currency businesses to sanctioned individuals.
PayPal stopped accepting new users from signing up to PayPal in Russia and blocked transactions by some users and banks in Russia as of 2 March. On 5 March, it shut down its services in Russia.
Visa announced they have suspended all operations in Russia, including disabling all cards issued by Russian banks from being used outside of Russia, and all cards issued outside of Russia from being used within Russia. Russia made up about 4% of Visa's net revenue for 2021.
Wise suspended all money transfers to Russia after limiting daily transfers to £200. However, their website still provides a rouble exchange rate estimate for reference.
The World Bank announced it had stopped all programs in Russia and Belarus. It also stated it had not approved any new loans or investments to Russia since 2014 and Belarus since mid-2020.
The French National Research Agency suspended its partnership with the Russian Science Foundation and announced it will no longer take part in actions or funding involving Russian or Belarusian institutions.
CERN announced it had suspended Russia's status as an observer to the organisation, would prohibit Russia from attending open sessions of the CERN Council, and would revoke its "special right" to attend restricted sessions on the Large Hadron Collider. There will also be no new collaborations with Russian institutions, however the 1100 current academics and institutes will be able to continue their work.
Analytics company Clarivate closed its Russian office and ceased all commercial activity in the country. It also suspended the evaluation of all new journal submissions from Russia and Belarus in the Web of Science.
The Council on International Educational Exchange suspended its spring 2022 program in Saint Petersburg, relocating students to other universities in Eastern Europe.
Deakin University announced that it would not enter any new agreements with Russia, not accept any new Russian students and exit its small indirect holding in Russian funds. It also stated that it does not currently have any partnerships with Russian agencies or universities.
UK's science ministerGeorge Freeman announced a review of all research funding from the UK government to Russian beneficiaries on 27 February 2022. This led to the UK Research and Innovation agency to suspend 50 grants for projects at British universities that were linked to Russian universities.
The European Commission suspended all payments to Russian institutions involved in EU-funded research projects. It also suspended the preparation of grant agreements for four projects under Horizon Europe.
The European Girls' Mathematical Olympiad excluded Russia from the competition in 2022, allowing Russia to compete in the competition remotely as private individuals.
The European Space Agency delayed ExoMars, a joint Europe-Russian mission to send a rover to Mars. Russia was set to provide the Kazachok lander and the mission was intended to launch on a Russian Proton rocket.
The German Research Foundation suspended all scientific collaboration with Russia, including the sharing of data, samples, research and equipment. Researchers applying for a fellowship in Russia will have to choose another country.
The International Mathematical Olympiad suspended the membership of Russia, allowing Russia to compete in the competition remotely as private individuals.
The Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg halts all institutional collaborations with Russia and bans researchers from undertaking business trips in Russia.
Space agency NASA explored ways to keep the International Space Station in orbit without Russia. It noted that Northrop Grumman had offered reboost capability and suggested that SpaceX could help.
Italy's National Research Council announced it will suspend operations in Russia and will not renew research agreements with institutions linked to Russia.
The QS World University Rankings announced it will remove Russian and Belarusian universities from future rankings and will cease promoting study at its universities.
All universities, university medical centers, universities of applied sciences, the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Dutch Research Council suspended partnerships with institutions in Russia and Belarus.
The University of Colorado announced it would liquidate its investment in publicly traded Russian companies and mutual funds with holdings in Russia, around US$6.1m.
The University of St Andrews announced it suspended all programs, collaborations and activities with Russia, including its joint Masters program with Moscow State University. It also divested its £40,000 in Russian holdings.
The University of Tübingen suspends all cooperation with Russian universities and research facilities, joint research activities and joint conferences. It also cancelled student exchanges in Russia and business trips to Russia.
BP announced it had exited its 19.75% shareholding in Rosneft, worth approximately US$14 billion. Furthermore, BP announces the resignation of its staff from the Rosneft board of directors, BP Chief Executive Bernard Looney and former BP chief executive Robert Dudley.
ExxonMobil cut ties with Russia, discontinuing operations and exiting the Sakhalin-II oil project. It also announced it will not be investing in new developments in the country.
Equinor announced its decision to stop new investments into Russia, and start the process of exiting Equinor's Russian Joint Ventures, worth US$1.2 billion.
Fortum announced it will not make new investments in Russia and will reduce its exposure to thermal power production. Fortum owns seven thermal power plants in Russia and has a 78% stake in Uniper which owns five thermal power plants.
Shell stopped buying Russian crude oil and stated it would phase out its involvement in all Russian hydrocarbons from oil to natural gas. It apologised for buying Russian oil after it had said it would pull out of its Russian operations. It had previously announced a withdrawal from all Russian exposure on 1 March, including pulling out of the Sakhalin-II LNG project, and withdrawing its support of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project.
TotalEnergies announced it "will no longer provide capital for new projects in Russia" but has retained ownership of its 19.4% stake in privately owned Novatek, 20% stake in the Yamal project and 10% stake in Arctic LNG 2.
Uniper announced it would take a full impairment loss on its loan to Nord Stream 2 worth €987m and would divest from its majority 83.73% stake in Unipro. However, it would not end long-term gas supply contracts as they are vital to Europe's gas supply.
Vestas announced it had stopped four wind turbine projects in Russia which were expected to be operational in late 2022 with capacity 253MW. It further announced it will not enter into new Russian projects.
Disney first announced that it would pause theatrical releases in Russia, including the release of Turning Red on 1 March, The company ended all business in Russia, including content and product licensing, Disney Cruise Line activities, National Geographic magazine, tours and content production on 10 March.
1 March 2022 (Motion pictures) 10 March 2022 (Other activities)
Sony Pictures Entertainment first suspended theatrical releases in the country, beginning with Morbius on 1 March, Two weeks later on 11 March, the company halted business operations in Russia, leading to cancellations of future television distribution deals and a planned home entertainment release of Spider-Man: No Way Home. Crunchyroll also suspended its anime streaming service in Russia.
1 March 2022 (Motion pictures) 11 March 2022 (TV distribution deals, home entertainment releases and Crunchyroll)
Warner Bros. Discovery (at the time WarnerMedia), announced that they have paused Warner Bros. theatrical releases in Russia, including the release of The Batman on 1 March, Later on 9 March, they shut down three networks in Russia.
1 March 2022 (Motion pictures) 9 March 2022 (Television networks)
Paramount announced on 1 March that it will pause theatrical releases in Russia, including the release of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, later it was announced they cancelled plans on the launch of its streaming service Paramount+ in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine and Kazakhstan.
Netflix announced it would not add 20 Russian channels to their service, despite a requirement to do so under Russian law. On 4 March, it was announced that the streammer has paused all future projects and acquisitions from Russia, effectively cancelling some of those potential movies and shows. On 6 March, Netflix went even further and announced it will pull out its service from Russia altogether.
4 March 2022 (Projects and Acquisitions) 6 March 2022 (full service)
YouTube said that its immediately blocking access around the world to channels associated with Russian state-funded media, citing a policy barring content that denies, minimizes or trivializes well-documented violent events.
Globecast is disrupting the transmission of Russian-controlled television network RT to customers of Singaporean cable providers Singtel TV and Starhub TV, as well as other customers of Access Communications in Canada and Sky in New Zealand.
27 February 2022 (New Zealand) 2 March 2022 (Canada) 4 March 2022 (Singapore)
BBC Studios stopped doing business with Russia, including licensing of their shows to Russian customers as well as licensing its formats for its series.
All3Media and its subsidiary company All3Media International stopped doing business with Russia, including licensing of their shows to Russian customers as well as licensing its formats for its series.
ITV Studios stopped doing business with Russia, including licensing of their shows to Russian customers as well as licensing its formats for its series, including The Voice.
The European Broadcasting Union excluded Russia from participating in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022, with the organisers saying its inclusion could "bring the competition into disrepute". On 26 May 2022, the Union suspended its Russian members indefinitely.
The Metropolitan Opera had cut ties with Russian performers who had voiced support for Putin, including who initially supported Putin but later opposed the invasion of Ukraine, such as soprano Anna Netrebko.
The Vienna Philharmonic had cut ties with Russian performers who had voiced support for Putin, even those who opposed the invasion of Ukraine, including conductor Valery Gergiev, and the Bolshoi Theatre.
The YouTube content creator Linus Media Group had ceased working with Russian and Belarusian entities and stopped shipping merchandise from their store to those countries.
The FIF banned cats bred in Russia from being imported or registered in its pedigree book outside Russia, and exhibitors living in Russia from being entered at any of its shows outside Russia, meaning cats bred in Russia or owned by Russians are banned from competitions. The restrictions are valid until the end of May.
The AKC said they will not approve judges from Russia to events it holds, and will deny any new requests for imported dog registrations from the Russian Kennel Federation.
The International Academy of Television Arts and Science announced that all programmes produced in Russia will not be eligible at the 50th International Emmy Awards. It had previously announced that the Academy had been suspending memberships from Russia as well as formal affiliations with Russian companies.
NAVI had severed its partnership with Russian esport organisation ESForce with companies under ESForce Holding includes RuHub, Epic Esports Events, Cybersport.ru and Virtus.pro.
BLAST Premier cancelled its upcoming tournament qualifier for the CIS region and banned Russian-based teams from attending its events for the "foreseeable future".
The ESL bans organisations with ties to the Russian government from participating in ESL Pro League, including Virtus.pro and Gambit Esports. However, the players are allowed to participate in the tournament "under a neutral name, without representing their country, organization or their teams’ sponsors on their clothing". All scheduled tournaments in the CIS region have also been paused and postponed.
EA halted sales of its games in both Russia and Belarus on 4 March. Previously, it had removed the Russian teams from FIFA 22, FIFA Mobile, and FIFA Online, and removed the Russian and Belarusian teams from NHL 22.
Nintendo had placed the Nintendo eShop for Russia into maintenance mode, which disabled the ability to make purchases or downloads for Nintendo Switch digital games, DLC, or microtransactions on 4 March. Six days later on 10 March, the company has suspended shipments of software and hardware to Russia and has delayed the release of Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp.
4 March 2022 (Nintendo eShop) 10 March 2022 (Shipments of game software and console hardware)
SIE pulled Gran Turismo 7 from digital and physical sale in Russia on 4 March. After facing public pressure to block their Russian player base, Sony announced on 9 March that shipments of PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 consoles & physical games along with shipments of software and hardware to Russia have been suspended. Moreover, the Russian PlayStation Store will be closed until further notice, meaning Russian players will be unable to purchase or download digital games, DLC, and microtransactions.
Epic Games halted sale of games, including Fortnite, as well as payments to the Epic Games store is suspended in Russia. The company announced that the portion of the sales of the said game from March 20 to April 3 to humanitarian relief organizations working in Ukraine.
Valve, the operator of the Steam platform, announced that they will stop payments to Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. Previously, it was criticized in early March 2022 for remaining in the Russian market despite many other foreign video game companies leaving.
Virtus.pro and Gambit Esports are barred from participating in the upcoming PGL Antwerp Major and its Regional Major Ranking (RMR). Players from the affected organizations are allowed to play "under neutral names and jerseys".
Most supermarkets removed Russian and Belarusian products, such as food, drinks, magazines, and newspapers, with the most notable supermarket chains to join the boycott.
24 February 2022 (Lithuania) 25 February 2022 (Latvia) 27 February 2022 (Estonia)
The liquor control boards of several provinces, including the Liquor Control Board of Ontario, the Société des alcools du Québec, the Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation, the Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries Corporation, the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation, and the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority, were ordered to remove Russian alcohol products from retail stores. The government of British Columbia ceased the import of Russian liquor products, and the Liquor Control Board of Ontario announced the removal of Russian liquor from all 679 liquor retailers within its jurisdiction.
The governors of Ohio, New Hampshire, and Utah placed legal restrictions on the sale of Russian liquor, and many bars, restaurants, and liquor retailers have removed Russian brands from their selections voluntarily, with some supporting Ukrainian liquors in a further show of solidarity with Ukraine. The Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority pulled Russian-sourced vodka from its stores and places them into storage. Utah and New Hampshire signs executive orders removing all Russian produced and Russian-branded alcohol from its stores. The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board no longer sells nor procures Russian products.
26 February 2022 (Florida, Utah, Virginia and New Hampshire) 28 February 2022 (Pennsylvania)
SPI, the holding company behind Stolichnaya vodka has said the company would rebrand its signature vodka to just Stoli, and change the source of the ingredients from Russia to Slovakia.
Fazer had suspended all exports of its confectionery, grain and bakery products from Finland to Russia and stopped all investments. Later, the company exits all its operations in Russia.
Valio had stopped all exports from Finland to Russia and Belarus. Later, the company closed its business operation in Russia, including imports to Finland.
Yum Brands, which has 1,000 KFC and Pizza Hut franchises in Russia, had faced criticism for not joining the boycott earlier, announced on 9 March that it would suspend all investment and restaurant development in the country. It also announced it would suspend operations of company-owned KFC restaurants and will make arrangements to suspend Pizza Hut restaurant operations.
McDonald's, which had been criticised for not joining the boycott, announced on 8 March it would temporarily close 850 locations in Russia, but would continue to pay its 62,000 Russian employees.[247] On 27 May, it was announced that the company would sell its Russian restaurants to licensee Alexander Govor,[248] who rebranded them as Vkusno & tochka.This company operative also in Belarus since November 2022.
Likewise, after being criticised for not joining the boycott, the company announced on 8 March it was suspending all business activity in Russia and would pause store operations at its 130 locations in the country. CEO Kevin Johnson further explained financial support would be provided to affected employees.
PepsiCo, which also initially resisted boycott calls, announced in a letter from CEO Ramon Laguarta, said that the "suspension of the sale of Pepsi-Cola, and our global beverage brands in Russia, including 7Up and Mirinda[,]... capital investments and all advertising and promotional activities in Russia." However, PepsiCo maintained it had a "responsibility" to continue to sell "milk and other dairy offerings, baby formula and baby food", and "by continuing to operate, we will also continue to support the livelihoods of our 20,000 Russian associates and the 40,000 Russian agricultural workers in our supply chain".
Heineken has stopped the production and sale of its namesake brand of beer in Russia. It had previously announced a suspension on new investments and exports to Russia. A number of local Russian brands continue operating, but they will be financially isolated from the main company.
Carlsberg has suspended further investments in, and exports to or from, Russia. Production and sale of its namesake brand of beer has been stopped. The local Russian Baltika brands continues operating, but any potential profits will be forwarded to humanitarian organisations.
Nestlé had suspended all capital investment in Russia on March 9, 2022. Two weeks later, amid public pressure, the company would suspend advertising, imports and exports of non-essential brands such as Nesquik and KitKat, and overall profits in the country of Russia. Essential products such as baby formula and hospital nutrition continue to be sold, with all profits being directed towards humanitarian organizations.
2 March 2022 (advertising, imports and exports on non-essential brands) 9 March 2022 (capital investment)
Papa John's has suspended all corporate operations in Russia, but it will still have 188 independent franchisee-owned stores in Russia, but it has halted all operational, marketing and business support to Russia.
After pressure from Alaskan legislators, the Alaska Permanent Fund announced it will not purchase any new Russian securities and will look to divest its Russian portfolio, consisting of US$63m in fixed income, US$153m in public equities and US$2.7m in private equity.
Kraft Heinz, which sells ketchup and other condiments in Russia, is suspending all new investments in Russia, as well as all exports and imports of its products into and out of Russia.
Mars, the food and animal care corporation including the maker of M&M's and Snickers, had expanding production in Russia in August 2021, announced on 1 March that they will suspending advertising in Russia and Belarus, but will continue to produce goods at its factories, including in five facilities that produce its pet food. Later on 10 March the company suspended new investments in Russia and will not import or export their products in or out of Russia, but it will refocus their efforts in Russia on their "essential role in feeding the Russian people and pets."
1 March 2022 (advertising) 10 March 2022 (investments)
Mondelez International announced that has scaled back all non-essential activities in Russia, but it will continue helping maintain the food supply during the invasion.
Kellogg's, a company that specializes on cereals and operates several plants in Russia; announced that the company has suspended all shipments and investments in Russia.
National Mustard Museum removed Russian mustards from exhibition, saying the mustards will be back "once the invasion of Ukraine is over and Russia recognizes and respects the sovereign nation of Ukraine" on a sign. The museum reverted the removal after the incident went viral online, saying Russian mustard makers are not responsible for the Ukrainian War.
Mitsubishi Motors assessed the risk of operating in Russia. Mitsubishi operates a small plant in partnership with Stellantis in Kaluga, southwest of Moscow. The plant employs about 2,700 people and produces small delivery vans.
Stellantis, the maker of Jeep, Fiat and Peugeot vehicles, has suspended exports of cars from Russia and imports of vehicles into the country. It operates a small plant in partnership with Mitsubishi in Kaluga, southwest of Moscow. The plant employs about 2,700 people and produces small delivery vans.
Hyundai, which produces about 200,000 cars in Russia annually, was criticized for not joining the boycott early. On 1 March, it announced suspension of production in Russia but sales have not paused. Hyundai holds a 70% stake in the Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Rus plant in St. Petersburg which is being sold in December 2023.
Nike halted all online sales in Russia, stating it could not guarantee delivery of products. However, its stores throughout Russia were open on 11 March, more than a week after the sports retailer said it was temporarily closing down all its approximately 100 shops in the country. On 23 June 2022, Nike announced that it would fully exit Russia.
1 March 2022 (online sales) 11 March 2022 (retail stores) 23 June 2022 (full exit)
Adidas announced on 1 March that it suspend its kit partnership with Russian Football Union, but it later announced on 9 March that most of its 500 stores operating in Russia, had closed them along with online sales there.
1 March 2022 (Russian Football Union partnership) 9 March 2022 (Retail stores)
LVMH, operator of fashion retail brands Dior, Givenchy, Fendi, Sephora and Bulgari and has 124 stores in Russia, announced that they will close all of their stores in Russia.
Crocs pausing its direct-to-consumer business, inclusive of e-commerce and retail operations, in Russia. It will also pause the importation of goods into the country.
Fast Retailing, the clothing giant that owns Uniqlo, announced that they will temporarily suspend their operations after some initial resistance. When asked about the possibility of closing Uniqlo in Russia, CEO Tadashi Yanai told Nikkei Asia "clothing is a necessity of life," and "the people of Russia have the same right to live as we do." The company later announced on 10 March said that operational challenges and a worsening of the conflict forced it to temporarily suspend operations.
IKEA closed their 17 stores in Russia and halted sourcing materials from Russia and Belarus, but its 14 malls in Russia, branded "Mega", remain open. IKEA's decision to close their stores led to Russian consumers panic buying furniture and home appliances on the final day of the store's operations in the country.
British Land will terminate its rental contract with Gazprom's global trading arm based in central London. Gazprom Marketing & Trading (GM&T) had occupied the top floors of 20 Triton Street in Regent's Park.
Estée Lauder, manufacturer and marketer of skin care, makeup, fragrance and hair care products, announced on 7 March they have also decided to suspend all commercial activity in the country, closing every store they own and operate including their brand sites as well as ceasing shipments to any of their retailers in Russia. Later, they initially suspended the company's business investments and initiatives in Russia.
The Lego Group stopped deliveries of their products to Russia. Lego does not own stores in the country; 81 Russian Lego stores are owned and run by the local Inventive Retail Group, but they will not receive further shipments. The company meanwhile announced it will donate funds in collaboration with The LEGO Foundation and Ole Kirk's Fond to UNICEF, Save the Children, and the Danish Red Cross for $16.5 million.
Mattel, one of the largest toy makers in America, most notably creating products like Barbie, Hot Wheels and Polly Pocket among others, announced that they paused all shipments into Russia and contributed $1 million in toys and cash to support organizations on the front lines including Save the Children and Polish local charities SOS Children's Villages and Caritas Polska. the company also announced that they launching a special retailer sales program in Europe with 100% of the proceeds of key products to be donated to other charities in neighboring countries including Poland and Czech Republic.
Moose Toys announced that they will suspend distribution of toys to Russia and it will donating $100,000 to Save the Children and it also supporting Dream Doctors to sending clown doctors to the children of the Ukraine-Moldova border.
YIT, Finland's biggest construction company, discontinued construction material purchases from Russia and has halted investments in plots or start up new apartments in Russia.
Metsä Group has discontinued its operations in Russia. Wood procurement in Russia for the Svir sawmill and imports to Metsä Group's Finnish and Swedish mills has also been discontinued.
Stora Enso, a provider of renewable products in packaging, biomaterials, wooden construction and paper, had stopped all production and sales in Russia and all export and import to and from Russia.
UPM had ceased deliveries to Russia, but announced operations at its Russian sites continue. The company later announced they ill suspend purchasing of wood in and from Russia as well as the UPM Chudovo plywood mill operations for the time being.
8 March 2022 (deliveries) 9 March 2022 (plywood mill operations)
Unilever suspends all investments, imports and exports into and out of Russia, but will continue to supply everyday essential food and hygiene products made in Russia to people in the country.
L'Oréal, the world's largest cosmetics company, said it will temporarily close its stores, e-commerce sites, and directly operated department store counters in Russia.
Philip Morris International, a tobacco company which has 3,200 workers in Russia, suspends investments in Russia and scales back manufacturing, but is continuing to pay salaries to all its employees in Russia.
Rio Tinto is in the process of terminating all commercial relationships it has with any Russian business, but it did not immediately respond to questions on whether it would continue to buy Russian fuel and other products through non-Russian third parties.
Inglot Cosmetics announced it stopped shipments of its products to the company's stores in Russia and undertook legal measures to ban the use of the company's trademark across Russia.
Tata Steel said that its steel manufacturing sites in India, the UK and the Netherlands would sourced alternative supplies of raw materials to end its dependence on Russia.
The Big Four accounting firms reduced their activity in Russia. Consulting company KPMG ended some Russian client relationships. Ernst & Young (EY) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) separated their Russian firms from the global network. Deloitte, the largest member of the Big Four, separated their practices in Russia and Belarus and removed them from the global network, effectively ceasing Deloitte operations in these two countries. The Deloitte action has affected about 3,000 employees in the Russian and Belarusian firms.
Grant Thornton International announced its Russian member firm is leaving the network, noting it had done work for Gazprom and the Central Bank of Russia.
OneWeb suspended all launches from Russia's Baikonur Cosmodrome and reviewed all projects involving Russian collaboration. This came after Russian Director of Roscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin, demanded OneWeb provide a guarantee that its satellites were not going to be used against Russia.
Maersk, a Danish container shipping company, and one of the largest container shipping companies in the world, halted all container shipping to Russia, except for basic food products, medicine and humanitarian aid.
MSC, a Swiss container shipping company, and one of the largest container shipping companies in the world, halted all container shipping to Russia, except for basic food products, medicine and humanitarian aid.
CMA CGM, a French container shipping company, and one of the largest container shipping companies in the world, halted all container shipping to Russia, except for basic food products, medicine and humanitarian aid.
Hapag-Lloyd, a German container shipping company, and one of the largest container shipping companies in the world, halted all container shipping to Russia, except for basic food products, medicine and humanitarian aid.
ONE, a Japanese container shipping company, and one of the largest container shipping companies in the world, halted all container shipping to Russia, except for basic food products, medicine and humanitarian aid.
Boeing announced it had suspended 'major operations' in Russia, including support for Russian airlines. It has also suspended buying titanium from Russia.
A petition to withdraw international support from Russian satellite navigation system GLONASS and boycott the platform has been proposed by Polish engineer Daniel Kucharski from University of Texas at Austin and signed by tens of thousands of individuals. It is now being considered by ILRS.[361]
The IOC called upon international sporting federations to either move or cancel any sports events planned in Russia or Belarus. It recommended sports federations and organisers not invite or allow the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials in international competitions.
Government officials from 37 countries signed a joint statement asking sports federations to ban Russian athletes and teams from competing in other countries, supporting the position by the International Olympic Committee and the International Paralympics Committee. Signatories include United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and multiple European countries.
The WAF, World Athletics, the IBU, the UCI, the BWF, the ICF, the IHF, the UPIM, World Rowing, the ISA, World Sailing, the ISSF, the ISU, the ITTF, World Triathlon, the IWF, United World Wrestling, the IBSF, the ILF and the FIG banned Russian and Belarusian athletes from participating in their events, in line with the IOC's recommendation.
26 February 2022 (FIG and UCI) 28 February 2022 (UPIM) 1 March 2022 (World Rowing, World Sailing, ICF, BWF and ISA) 2 March 2022 (United World Wrestling and World Athletics) 3 March 2022 (IWF, ISU, and WAF)
Russian and Belarusian athletes were banned from participating in the 2022 Wimbledon Championships and other tennis events in the United Kingdom. This was despite the worldwide governing bodies allowing athletes to play under a neutral flag. In retaliation for the unilateral decision, the bodies stripped ranking points from the Wimbledon tournament and levied fines against both organisations. A decision is yet to be made as to whether this ban will continue into the 2023 tournament.[382]
The Estonian Government, and Estonian Tennis Association banned Russian and Belarusian players from entering tennis tournaments in the country. This affected the 2022 Tallinn Open, as well as a number of smaller ITF tournaments.
World Skate banned all Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials from participating in competitions sanctioned by World Skate. Before the ban, World Skate initially allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete as neutrals.
The IFSC banned all Russian and Belarusian climbers from competing in IFSC competitions until further notice. Furthermore, it stripped Russian city Moscow from hosting one of the events at the 2022 IFSC Climbing World Cup.
The FIVB declared all Russian and Belarusian club and national teams won't be eligible to compete in FIVB competitions until further notice. Furthermore, FIVB stripped Russia of its hosting rights of the 2022 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship.
World Rugby banned all Russian and Belarusian national and club teams from its competitions and suspended Both of the countries memberships indefinitely.
Rugby Europe banned all Russian and Belarusian national and club teams from its competitions and suspended Both of the countries memberships indefinitely.
The FEI removed all events from Russia and Belarus and an indefinite ban on participation by Russian and Belarusian athletes, horses, and officials in FEI events.
28 February 2022 (events) 2 March 2022 (Athletes, Horses & Officials ban)
World Taekwondo banned Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing at its events and will no longer organise or recognise events in Russia and Belarus. Furthermore, it stripped Vladimir Putin of the honorary black belt given to him in 2013.
2 March 2022 (stripping of Putin's honorary black belt) 3 March 2022 (athletes ban and hosting of events)
Canada South America (excluding Mexico) Europe Asia
The R&A, which governs golf outside the U.S. and Mexico, announced it would decline applications from Russian and Belarusian golfers for scheduled events.
On 25 February, FINA, the international governing body for aquatic sports, removed the FINA Water Polo World League match between Russia and Greece scheduled to take place in Saint Petersburg on 8 March from the calendar, as well as cancelled a 2022 FINA Diving World Series event and a 2022 FINA Artistic Swimming World Series event, scheduled to be the first ever joint event between the two World Series to take place in Kazan in April. It withdrew the FINA Order awarded to Vladimir Putin in 2014 on 1 March 2022, the same day it announced athletes and officials from both Belarus and Russia would not be allowed to compete using their country's name, colours, nor anthem at any FINA events indefinitely. The 2022 FINA World Junior Swimming Championships scheduled for August in Kazan was initially cancelled before being announced it would change host. On 8 March, FINA implemented a protocol for individual review of athletes deemed to be of concern for the safety and well-being of participants at its competitions. On 23 March, FINA later banned all Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials from taking part at the 2022 World Aquatics Championships and withdrew the 2022 FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) from being held in Kazan. Furthermore, it opened a disciplinary procedure against Russian swimmer Evgeny Rylov for his alleged participation in the 2022 Moscow rally. On 20 April 2022, FINA suspended Rylov from FINA competitions and activities for nine months and banned all Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials from all FINA events through the end of 2022. On 5 April 2023, it announced the ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes from its competitions was in effect indefinitely.
25 February 2022 (scheduled events) 1 March 2022 (stripping of Putin's FINA Order award) 8 March 2022 (individual athlete review protocol) 23 March 2022 (athletes and officials ban and the withdrawal of 2022 FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) hosting) 20 April 2022 (individual athlete suspension, athletes and officials ban) 5 April 2023 (athletes ban extended from 2022)
LEN, the governing body for aquatic sports in Europe, banned all athletes and officials from Russia and Belarus from taking part in their competitions, as well as announced withholding LEN events from taking place in either country.
UEFA, the European governing body for football, decided to relocate the Champions League final from Saint Petersburg to Saint-Denis, France, after a meeting of the body's executive committee. The national football teams of Poland, the Czech Republic, and Sweden refused to play against Russia. On 28 February, after criticism for its decision and a prospect of boycotts by multiple countries, UEFA went further and indefinitely suspended Russian teams from playing international football. On 4 March, Russia appealed suspensions by UEFA to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. However, on 15 March, the appeal for the UEFA suspension was later upheld.
On 27 February, FIFA announced that Russian teams would have to play as "Football Union of Russia", without flags or anthems; moreover, any "home" games would be played at a neutral site without fans. On 28 February, after criticism for its decision and a prospect of boycotts by multiple countries, FIFA went further and indefinitely suspended Russian teams from playing international football. On 4 March, Russia appealed suspensions by FIFA to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. However, on 18 March, the appeal for the FIFA suspension was later upheld.
Formula One called off the 2022 Russian Grand Prix, with world champions Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen calling it "wrong" to race in the country. It also cancelled its contract with the promoter for races in Russia, which ran through 2025.
The FIA announced that while Russian and Belarusian teams were banned from competing, Russian and Belarusian drivers are still allowed to compete under a neutral flag, while releasing a series of guidelines.
The Haas F1 Team ended their sponsorship agreements with Russian chemical company Uralkali, and the team terminated the contract of their Russian driver Nikita Mazepin, getting replaced by Kevin Magnussen.
The IJF suspended President Putin's status as "Honorary President and Ambassador of the International Judo Federation" on 27 February. It also cancelled all judo competitions in Russia on 7 March. Russian athletes would be allowed to participate in IJF events only under the IJF flag, logo and anthem. Then, on 2 March, the IJF removed Putin and Russian billionaire Arkady Rotenberg, the development manager of the IJF Executive Committee, from all positions.
27 February 2022 (suspension of Putin's "Honorary President and Ambassador" status) 2 March 2022 (cancelation of judo competitions) 7 March 2022 (resignation of Rotenberg as development manager of the IJF Executive Committee)
The NHL announced that it was suspending all Russian business relationships, pausing Russian language websites, and would not host future competitions in Russia. Russian players are still allowed to play.
The FIDE banned Russian and Belarusian flags from international chess events, ended sponsorships with Russian and Belarusian sanctioned companies, and opened bids to other countries to host the 44th Chess Olympiad. Furthermore, it suspended Anatoly Karpov's title of FIDE Ambassador for Life.
The IGF banned Russian and Belarusian players from competing under their flags in IGF hosted events, while urging its members to relocate or cancel their events currently planned in Russia or Belarus.
The EGF suspended Russia's membership in the organization, cancelled or relocated events planned in Russia; and banned the display of Russian national symbols, flags or anthems in EGF organized events.
The ITF suspended the Russian Tennis Federation and Belarus Tennis Federation from ITF membership and participation in ITF international team competitions.
Both the men's and women's tennis associations suspended tournaments in Russia and Belarus. While neither association has banned Russian and Belarusian players from participating in other tournaments, they are required to compete under a neutral flag. In country-focused events, such as the United Cup, Russian and Belarusian players were not allowed to participate.
The FIAS suspended international sambo competitions in Russia and Belarus. Russian and Belarusian athletes may participate in FIAS international competitions under the FIAS flag, logo, and anthem.
The English Premier League announced that they will cancel its broadcast rights with Russian television network Match which supposed to be started in the 2022/23 season, its current broadcaster Okko Sport will end the rights to the league earlier.[456]
Domain registrar and hosting provider Namecheap terminated its service to all Russian customers, requiring users to switch providers by 22 March 2022. Namecheap allowed exceptions for "all anti-regime media, protest resources, and any type of websites that are helping to end this war and regime".
GoDaddy stopped supporting new registrations for the .ru extension. Registrants are also unable to sell or transfer existing domains to any party for profit.
Uber distanced itself from the Russian company Yandex.Taxi by ending its partnership agreement and three Uber executives resigned from its board. Uber agreed to allow Yandex to purchase its 29% stake in the company.
Microsoft suspended new sales of its products and services on 4 March. Later it was announced that the company would donate the sales of Epic Games' Fortnite on Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S from March 20 to April 3 to humanitarian relief organizations working in Ukraine.
Samsung suspended shipments to Russia and is donating $6 million to aid refugees and to other humanitarian relief efforts. Samsung Pay is also suspended in Russia.
LG Electronics, a South Korean technology company, operates a TV and home electronics plant in Ruza, Russia, and has said that it has enough inventory of raw materials and components in Russia for the production of their products there. It announced on 19 March 2022 that it is suspending all shipments to Russia.
Google suspended its ad business on 4 March in response to the Russian government's ultimatum to "stop advertising anti-Russian propaganda". Then, on 11 March, YouTube said that its immediately blocking access around the world to channels associated with Russian state-funded media, citing a policy barring content that denies, minimizes or trivializes well-documented violent events. On 18 May 2022, Google Russia filed for bankruptcy, though the company will keep its free services, such as its search engine and YouTube, available in Russia.
4 March 2022 (ad business) 11 March 2022 (YouTube)
TSMC halted sales to Russia and third parties that supplied to Russia. Russian companies that design their own chips such as Baikal CPU, MCST, Yadro and STC Module are manufactured by TSMC, which cut off Russia's access to semiconductors.
KONE, ceased deliveries to Russia, and stopped signing new orders from Russia for the time being. The company made a donation for Ukraine through the Finnish Red Cross.
Web Summit banned all Russian government members, agencies, state-controlled media, state-backed businesses, and companies with ties to the Russian government from participating at its conferences.
Wärtsilä, a Finnish company which manufactures and services power sources and other equipment in the marine and energy markets, has suspended all deliveries and new sales to Russia.
Ponsse, a Finnish company that manufactures, sells and maintains forest machine, discontinues temporarily all export operations to Russia and Belarus, including local spare parts and service operations.
Clutch.co, the leading ratings and reviews platform for IT, Marketing, and Business service providers, suspended all business activity in Russia and Belarus.
Amazon ceased shipping of products in Russia and Belarus. They removed Amazon Prime Video access in Russia. They are not accepting customers based in Russia or Belarus for Amazon Web Services and Amazon third-party sellers.
Caterpillar, an American corporation that sells machinery, engines, generator sets and financial products, are suspending operations in their Russian manufacturing facilities.
Hitachi is pausing exports to Russia and suspending all manufacturing in the country, with the exception of products, services and support for electrical power equipment.
Teradata, a software company that provides database and analytics-related software, products, and services stopped conducting business in Russia and has ceased customer interactions and services with all Russian accounts.
Hilton, an American hospitality company with 29 locations in Russia, is suspending all new developmental activity in Russia and have closed their corporate office in Moscow.
Hyatt, a hospitality company with 6 locations in Russia, is halting development in Russia and new investments, but it continues to evaluate hotel operations in Russia.
InterContinental Hotels Group, a British hotel operator with 29 hotels in Russia, suspended its investments in Russia on 10 March 2022. However, they are still actively taking bookings and there is a new Crowne Plaza opening in Moscow in June. On 27 June, IHG suspended all operations in Russia.
10 March 2022 (investments only) 27 June 2022 (full operations)
Marriott, a hospitality company with 10 locations in Russia, has closed its corporate office in Moscow, and paused the opening of upcoming hotels and all future hotel development and investment in Russia. However, it says their hotels in Russia are owned by third parties and they continue to evaluate the ability for these hotels to remain open.
eDreams ODIGEO shuts down its Russian website on 28 February, with Russian and Belarussian airlines removed from its inventory. Later on 4 March, the company stopped offering hotel bookings in conjunction with Booking Holdings.
28 February 2022 (website) 4 March 2022 (Hotel bookings)
G Adventures and its company founder Bruce Poon Tip announced that the tour operator has cancelled all tours in Russia and travellers booked on forward departures will be refunded.
Kensignton Tours is not accepting bookings for trips scheduled for Russia and Ukraine throughout 2022, and has decided to move these trips to future dates.
Tauck announced that all 2022 departures of its Russian Glories, Baltic Treasures tour have been cancelled. That itinerary included Lithuania and Latvia, plus Finnish capital Helsinki and Russian cities St. Petersburg and Moscow. Also, Tauck has removed St. Petersburg as a call in its St. Petersburg & the Baltic Sea small-ship cruise itinerary.
Countries that have banned Russian aircraft from their airspace in response to the invasion
By 5 March 2022, the following countries and territories had completely closed their airspace to all Russian airlines and Russian-registered private jets:[523][524][525][526]
The European Union had already banned all Belarusian aircraft from EU airspace in June 2021 in response to the forced landing of Ryanair Flight 4978.[527][528]
As well, airlines from many other countries have diverted their flights away from Russian airspace, despite not being banned by Russia or not slapping a ban on Russian aircraft. This includes:
Critics of the boycott and sanctions have predicted that they would not cause significant changes in the Russian government's policy. Patrick Cockburn argued that sanctions similar to those used againstIraq will cause widespread poverty and claim more lives than the use of military force.[530] Others have supported the cultural boycott but called for economic coercion to be narrowly targeted.[531][532] Some critics noted that the decision of major credit card companies to suspend their operations in Russia will affect any Russian who has taken out a credit card in their home country, including those who have protested against the war in Ukraine, who are trying to flee Russia or are now living abroad.[533][534]
Activists in Russia believe that amid lost access to financial and educational institutions, Putin will be better able to paint Western countries as the enemy.[535]Carnegie Moscow Center scholar Andrey Movchan wrote that sanctions aimed at ordinary Russians could be "exactly what the Kremlin wants – that tens of millions of Russians who oppose the regime will be unable to leave the country and even temporarily find themselves in a world free of Russian propaganda," stating that sanctions should instead "uncompromisingly block the Kremlin's access to its financial and technological resources."[536]
Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince stated that "if Cloudflare were to stop operating in Russia, the Russian government would celebrate us shutting down" because "indiscriminately terminating service would do little to harm the Russian government, but would both limit access to information outside the country, and make significantly more vulnerable those who have used us to shield themselves as they have criticized the government".[537]
Regarding the cultural boycott, Patrick West wrote that many parts had become a vehicle for Russophobia, notably an incident in which the University of Milano-Bicocca in Italy considered cancelling a course on Dostoyevski but ultimately did not.[538] A decision by the Cardiff Philharmonic Orchestra to cancel a planned performance of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture was met with similar controversy.[539] One of the directors stated that continuing with the original concert would have been offensive due to the themes of Russian military pride and not simply because Tchaikovsky was Russian.[540] Discussing these issues, the communications coordinator for Diem25 expressed regret that Netflix was suspending its adaptation of Anna Karenina due to the involvement of a Russian production company.[541]
In April 2022, only 11% of Belarusians supported sending Belarusian troops to Ukraine.[547] A study performed by Chatham House in May 2022 revealed that 32% of Belarusian respondents supported the Russian invasion of Ukraine and 40% did not support the invasion.[548]
A Kremlin-associated poll claimed that the 68% of the Russian population approves of the "special military operation" in Ukraine while independent polls put that number at 58%.[549][550][551] The Kremlin-associated poll, which was conducted between February 28 and March 6, claimed that Putin's approval rating was 74.6%.[552] According to the poll, in the group of 18-to-24-year-olds, only 29% Russians supported the "special military operation" in Ukraine.[550] Two reasons many Russians still support Putin and the "special military operation" in Ukraine has to do with the propaganda and disinformation being sown by the Kremlin,[553] and the antagonization and discrimination by Western populations/institutions of Russian people.[554][555] Some Russians publicly displayed the infamous "Z" letter.[556][557] Russian gymnast Ivan Kuliak displayed it while standing on a victory podium near a Ukrainian athlete and later expressed no regret for doing that.[558] More than 200,000 attended Vladimir Putin's pro-war nationalist rally at the Luzhniki Stadium on 18 March,[559] with many forced by their employers to attend.[560]
A series of four online polls of Moscow residents by Alexei Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation claimed that between February 25 and March 3, the share of respondents in Moscow who considered Russia an "aggressor" increased from 29% to 53%, while the share of those who considered Russia a "peacemaker" fell by half from 25% to 12%.[561]
Some observers noted what they described as a "generational struggle" among Russians over perception of the war, with younger Russians generally opposed to the war and older Russians more likely to accept the narrative presented by state-controlled media in Russia, the main source of news for most Russians.[562] Kataryna Wolczuk, an associate fellow of Chatham House's Russia and Eurasia programme, said that "[Older] Russians are inclined to think in line with the official 'narrative' that Russia is defending Russian speakers in Ukraine, so it's about offering protection rather than aggression."[562] A poll by the independent Levada Center published on 30 March saw Putin's approval rating jump from 71% in February to 83% in March.[563][564] However, many respondents do not want to answer pollsters' questions for fear of negative consequences.[565] In March 2022, when a Russian politician Maxim Katz and a group of Russian researchers commissioned a poll on Russians’ attitudes toward the war in Ukraine, 29,400 of the 31,000 people they called refused to answer after hearing the theme of the question.[566]
Companies criticised for not joining the boycott
A number of companies have faced growing pressure to halt operations in Russia, but have not yet done so.[19][567][568] Those include:
Accor, a French hospitality company, with 55 locations in Russia.[569]
AmerisourceBergen, an American healthcare company, maintains research depots in Russia.[569]
Binance, one of world's largest crypto exchanges, refused to ban all Russian accounts.[17] However, Binance announced that it has donated more than $10 million to its Ukrainian Emergency Relief Fund and $2.5 million to UNICEF's efforts in Ukraine.[570][571]
Bosch, is one of the largest German multinational engineering and technology companies headquartered in Gerlingen.[572][573]
Bridgestone, a Japanese auto and truck parts manufacturer,[569] left Russia after it sold all its interests in December 2023.[574]
COSCO, a Chinese container shipping company, and one of the largest container shipping companies in the world.[352]
Credit Suisse, a global investment bank and financial services firm founded and based in Switzerland. Credit Suisse has declared that its Moscow offices remain open, as it was trying to shred evidence of $1.7 billion Russian loans backed by yachts.[575]
Deutsche Bank, a German multinational investment bank and financial services company headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany, and dual-listed on the FWB and the NYSE.[576] According to The New Yorker, Deutsche Bank has long had an "abject"[577] reputation among major banks, as it has been involved in major scandals across different issue areas.
Ferragamo, an Italian luxury goods company,[569] does not own stores in Russia and shipments to franchise operation ceased in March 2022.[578]
Auchan, a supermarket chain which in 2016 was ranked first in a list of the largest foreign-owned companies by the Russian edition of Forbes, with revenue in Russia of more than $5 billion.[579][15]
Leroy Merlin, a home improvement and DIY retailer, operates 112 stores in Russia. On 11 March the company announced it has no plans to reduce its operations in Russia.[580][15]
Kia, a South Korean car manufacturer and Russia's third-largest carmaker as of 2016.[583] Kia holds a 30% stake in the Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Rus plant in St. Petersburg which is being sold in December 2023. The contract includes a two year buy back clause.[584]
Nokian Tyres, which produces 80% of its tyres in Russia and employs around 1,600 people.[587] In October 2022, Nokian sold its Russian operations to Tatneft for €400 million and announced a €650 million investment for a new factory in Romania.[588]
Otis Worldwide, an American elevator and escalator manufacturer.[569] It announced on 11 March that is suspending new sales of its elevators and escalators in Russia while continuing all existing maintenance deals.[589]
^Devlin, Edward (9 March 2022). "Lindt suspends Russian business – as it heralds 'remarkable' UK growth". The Grocer. Retrieved 9 March 2022. The posh chocolate brand said today it had 're-evaluated our business activities in Russia and decided to temporarily close our shops with immediate effects and suspend all of our deliveries to Russia'.