Apple stops selling products in Russia after the invasion in Ukraine
There is a war going on in Ukraine and there have been countless sanctions against Russia. In addition to the direct financial restrictions, various companies have also announced that they will join the economic penalties. Apple has now taken an unusual step. They are no longer selling iPhones in Russia.
TL;DR
- Apple stops selling products in Russia.
- App store is now only available to a limited extent.
- CEO Tim Cook made a clear statement.
Russia crossed the borders of Ukraine last week and now invaded its neighbor without being provoked. In order to better control this situation and to prevent further military steps, Western countries imposed heavy sanctions on the country. Private companies are not stopping there either. After Adidas and Nike already stopped selling products, Apple is now also following this call and no longer sells official products in Russia.
The American company has no Apple stores in the country and sells its own products only in the official online store. Locally, Apple devices can only be purchased through resellers. This is now no longer possible, and Apple has also restricted the function of the App Store. For example, it is no longer possible to pay with Apple Pay. In addition, the traffic information in the Apple Maps service is no longer accessible, so that troop movements can no longer be tracked.
"As a company, we are taking additional actions as well. We have paused all product sales in Russia. Last week, we stopped all exports into our sales channel in the country. Apple Pay and other services have been limited. RT News and Sputnik News are no longer available for download from the App Store outside Russia. And we have disabled both traffic and live incidents in Apple Maps in Ukraine as a safety and precautionary measure for Ukrainian citizens." Tim Cook - CEO, Apple
Following the demand of Ukrainian Vice President Mychaylo Fedorov (Михайло Федоров) to shut down the entire App Store, Apple has taken the same step as Microsoft and Google. Thus, access to Russian state media RT and Sputnik is no longer possible. So far, however, only in Russia. It is not yet known whether Apple will take further steps.
Clear words from Tim Cook
Since 2021, Apple has also been represented in Ukraine with an office in Kiev (Київ). Now Apple CEO Tim Cook addressed his employees in an email. There he describes the current situation and spoke of the importance of standing together now to keep the peace. The company also promises to support the teams in Ukraine.
According to its own statement, Apple is in contact with the employees from Ukraine and helps them inside and outside the country. The company also plans to match all internal company donations retroactively from Feb. 25, 2022.
"We are working to support our teams in Ukraine and across the region. In Ukraine, we have been in contact with every employee, assisting them and their families in any way we can." Tim Cook - CEO, Apple
One more note: We don't usually write about such topics, as NextPit is supposed to serve as a "safe haven". Shutting off the outside world and plunging into a tech universe is what should be at the forefront of our site. However, we must not close our eyes to reality either. We therefore ask you to limit any political discussion in the comments.
What do you think of Apple's move? Do you think this is just for marketing purposes or could it have an effect on the country after all? Let us know in the comments!
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