Russia Ukraine War: Intel Suspends All Operations In Russia Effective Immediately

Last Updated on April 11, 2022 by Anu Joy

The Russia-Ukraine conflict has been ongoing for over a month, and the constant barrage of sanctions has pushed most firms to withdraw from the region. Intel, one of the world’s leading semiconductor businesses, has now suspended its operations in Russia starting immediately. This Tuesday, the brand issued a statement outlining how this plan will be implemented in the following weeks.

Intel has now joined a growing list of companies that have ceased operations in Russia, including Google, Apple, and others. Intel stated in their statement that they had already ceased shipping chips to clients in Russia and Belarus in early March. Intel noted that it has approximately 1,200 employees in the region and that it is “trying to support all of their employees through this tough situation”.

Taking this step ordinarily in a region like Russia wouldn’t have been easy but the Western sanctions have made it increasingly difficult for global companies to operate in the country. The US government has further imposed sanctions on the Russian electronics industry, and the order includes any of Intel’s partners based out of Russia. That being said, Intel is not the only semiconductor brand facing difficulty here, as tech giants such AMD and Nvidia have also halted their operations in the region since last month.

Recently, the Associated Press reported that as many as 70,000 Russian technology workers have fled Russia since the invasion of Ukraine began. This exodus will further put pressure on the country’s tech sector in the coming months and years until the government steps in to help boot the sector up.