Africa’s hunger offers Russia chance to fight isolation by West


SATURDAY JULY 29 2023

Russia President Vladimir Putin speaks at a plenary meeting at the second Russia-Africa Summit in St Petersburg, Russia on July 28, 2023. PHOTO | AFP

Summary

Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa was given a “free” helicopter to help him travel around the country.

A deeper look at Russia’s involvement in Africa shows that the summit is mainly a symbolic event to signal the strengthening of ties, and to acknowledge Russia’s presence in the continent.

US Permanent Representative to Nato, labelled Russia among the “two main threats facing the Nato Alliance”.

Putin has not fulfilled the promises he made during the earlier Russia-Africa summit in 2019, where Moscow promised $40 billion worth of investments to the continent.

By AGGREY MUTAMBO

Russian President Vladimir Putin was this week shaking hands with and hugging African leaders, labelling them friends, a partial show of the continent’s ties with Moscow in the wake of Western isolation after invading Ukraine last year.

And the gathering, the second Russia-Africa Summit in four years, came with significant imagery: The ongoing food crisis in Africa, and Russia’s war in Ukraine, seemed like a perfect combination for influence peddling.

On Thursday, Moscow offered free grain to six poor African countries and promised to stabilise supplies to other needy states.

Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe, Mali, Somalia, the Central African Republic and Eritrea will receive “free” food from Russia, shipped directly to their borders.

Somalia had their decades-old $684 million debt owed to Moscow forgiven in a deal penned on Wednesday. The money was owed before Somalia collapsed more than three decades ago.

Read: Somalia gets debt relief from Russia-Africa Summit

African leaders press Putin on grain deal, Ukraine War

US urges African leaders to confront Putin on grain disruptions

But the gesture could reflect Russia’s use of every opportunity to cement ties with a restless Africa.

Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who faces a general election in three weeks, was given a “free” helicopter to help him travel around the country.

Back in St Petersburg, President Putin spoke to his guests as “friends” and told them of his intent to improve grain supplies to the continent.

“Russia will always be a responsible international supplier of agricultural products. We will continue to support the countries and regions most in need.

“We will supply them with our grain and other food products, including free of charge and within the framework of the UN World Food Programme,” Mr Putin argued.

Read: Russia to seek deeper alliance with Africa

Mutual ties

At the gala reception hosted in honour of the participants of the second Russia–Africa Summit, President Putin told the leaders that their coming illustrates the mutual desire of Russia and African countries to expand and deepen mutually “beneficial ties and contacts.”

“This is also a real confirmation of our common intentions to take Russia-Africa relations to a new, more advanced level in politics, security, in the economic and social spheres.”

In the past, he argued, the Soviet Union rendered African nations “tangible support in the struggle against colonialism, racism and apartheid…”

Today, he said, Russia and the African countries stand together for the formation of “a just, multipolar world order based on the principles of sovereign equality of states, non-interference in their internal affairs, and respect for peoples’ right to determine their own destiny.”

Putin spoke to the leaders – among them Ethiopia Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Comoros President and African Union chair Azali Assoumani, Egypt’s Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Felix Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa, Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe, Yoweri Museveni of Uganda and Evariste Ndayishimiye of Burundi, the current chair of the East African Community, among others.

Read:  Putin hosts African leaders in Russia after grain deal exit

Symbolic event

A deeper look at Russia’s involvement in Africa shows that the summit is mainly a symbolic event to signal the strengthening of ties, and to acknowledge Russia’s presence in the continent.

Dr Angela Muvumba Sellström, senior researcher at the Nordic Africa Institute (NAI), says Russia advocates a multipolar world in which Western democratic ideals are not imposed and the ideological sovereignty of non-Western nations is respected.

The narrative appeals to Africans who have often protested an unjust international order and suits Moscow’s campaign against Western hegemony.

But it is not unique: China, the European Union, the US, and France have held similar meetings.

“Russia has seized on Africa’s genuine feelings of disenfranchisement in the global economy and global governance, leveraging its own sense of marginalisation from the global stage to exaggerate the tangible benefits it can offer to the continent,” Dr Sellström told The EastAfrican.

In the short-term, against the background of the Russian war in Ukraine, Moscow is using the grain as a tool, especially after it refused to continue with the Black Sea Grain Initiative, she said, but noted that Russia’s strongest partners on the African continent – Mali, Central African Republic, Zimbabwe, and even Uganda – would have to pursue bilateral arrangements to access grain purchases.

“I do not believe there are any viable long-term economic benefits on offer to Africa from Russia. Less than one percent of foreign direct investment in Africa comes from Russia.

That is a lot less than Europe, the US and China. South Africa and Mauritius have more direct investment in the rest of Africa than does Russia. Moscow focuses mostly on getting natural resources and energy out of Africa, and gives very little direct aid,” she said.

Read: Russia's presence in Africa: Weapons, Wagner and energy

Terror accusations

This week, however, Russia came under criticism from Ukraine and the West for pulling out of the Grain Initiative and attacking a Ukrainian port in Odessa, which had been exporting grain.

Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky said everyone will be impacted by the Russian invasion.

“Everyone is affected by this Russian terror. Everyone in the world should be interested in bringing Russia to justice for its terror,” he said in a Telegram video message on Thursday, after Russian missiles destroyed nearly 60,000 tonnes of grain in a yard in Odessa.

And Julianne Smith, US Permanent Representative to Nato, labelled Russia among the “two main threats facing the Nato Alliance”, the other being terrorism.

“I think those are topics of interest to our partners across Africa as it relates both to Russia’s activities on the African continent and what Africa – what Russia is doing in Ukraine as it relates to this grain deal,” Smith told a group of African journalists in a virtual meeting on Wednesday.

“Russia has violated the foundational principles of the UN Charter itself. The Wagner Group behind the recent coup attempt against Putin’s regime remains a destabilising presence and a threat to the African continent more specifically.

Read:  Inside the Russian mercenary machine in Africa

“And, of course, Russia’s refusal just recently to extend the Black Sea Grain Initiative and its threat to attack commercial vessels carrying grain have led to increased food insecurity across the globe,” she said, adding that the US has established a roadmap on global food security, alongside 100 other countries, worth $4.5 billion for both acute and medium- to long-term food security assistance.

On July 17, Russia withdrew from the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which was scheduled for its fourth renewal, accusing Ukraine of diverting grain from poor recipients. The initiative has been instrumental in facilitating the export of Ukraine’s grain and agricultural products to global markets.

Shortly after the termination of the deal, the Russian Ministry of Defense asserted that it would view any ship heading for Ukraine as a potential carrier of military cargo.

A bulletin by the EUvsDisinfo, a European Union project on Russia’s disinformation, argued Moscow had twisted facts,including a denial of how Ukraine had been the biggest supplier of grain to the World Food Programme.

Yet experts think the West was reactionary.

“The West is already reacting as guessed: Focus on Russia; like the focus on China, which makes other players like African countries appear as voiceless subjects lacking agency,” said Dr Hawa Noor, associate fellow at the Institute for Intercultural and International Studies (InIIS), University of Bremen.

Read: The new scramble for Africa

“Much as Russia is re-positioning itself following the war by courting Southern countries, it should be remembered that these countries have their own agendas too. It’s not all about Russia doing something to African countries.

“There are a lot of bilateral deals as ever despite that tug-of-war between major powers. These countries have their own agendas to push. And, of course for the West, the less support for Russia in Africa, the better,” she told The EastAfrican.

Dr Nasong’o Muliro, a foreign policy and security specialist at the Global Centre for Policy and Strategy in Nairobi, said the St Petersburg Summit may just reflect pragmatism and independence of African countries in their foreign policy in their relations with Russia.

“Every country has an aspect of their interest that they individually wish to fulfil through their relations with Russia. Indeed, Africa has not developed a common position towards Russia, as in holding an extraordinary meeting at the African Union to discuss matters surrounding Russia-Ukraine. So, it is not easy to generalise the strategic interest of African states toward Russia,” Dr Muliro told The EastAfrican.
Moscow strategy

Russia conducts its foreign policy with African states at an elite level, an opaque or unconventional statecraft, which may explain why its close allies in Africa strongmen or leaders of countries are mainly undergoing complex political transitions such as Libya, Mali, Sudan and Guinea. As a result, Dr Muliro argues, Russia has failed to be in touch with the masses or build people-to-people relations on the continent.

Putin has also not fulfilled the promises he made during the earlier Russia-Africa summit in 2019, where Moscow promised $40 billion worth of investments to the continent.

Read: Russia-Africa summit: What Vladmir Putin stands to gain

The politics of food, however, is appealing.

“Russia has done its homework well and found that beyond the supply of arms, the new gateway to Africa is through the supply of grains and fertiliser to mitigate the food crisis occasioned by adverse climate change. Literally get to the head and heart through the stomach. This food insecurity is likely to continue because it is projected that most states especially in East Africa are most likely going to have a poor harvest,” Dr Muliro said.

GOING BACK TO ITS ROOTS

Russia proposes nationalising 

foreign-owned factories that shut 

operations

Tue, March 8, 2022,

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) -A senior member of Russia's ruling party has proposed nationalising foreign-owned factories that shut down operations in the country over what the Kremlin calls a special military operation in Ukraine.

Several foreign companies including Ford and Nike have announced temporary shutdowns of stores and factories in Russia in order to put pressure on the Kremlin to stop its invasion of neighbouring Ukraine and as their supply chains are disrupted.

In a statement published on Monday evening on the United Russia website, the secretary of the ruling party's general council Andrei Turchak said shutting operations was a "war" against the citizens of Russia.

The statement mentioned Finnish privately owned food companies Fazer, Valio and Paulig as the latest to announce closures in Russia.

"United Russia proposes nationalising production plants of the companies that announce their exit and the closure of production in Russia during the special operation in Ukraine," Turchak said.

"This is an extreme measure, but we will not tolerate being stabbed in the back, and we will protect our people. This is a real war, not against Russia as a whole, but against our citizens," he said.

"We will take tough retaliatory measures, acting in accordance with the laws of war," Turchak said.

Paulig Chief Executive told Reuters in an email this would not change its plans to withdraw from Russia. Fazer and Valio did not wish to comment when contacted by Reuters.

Fazer, which makes chocolate, bread and pastries, has three bakeries in St Petersburg and one in Moscow, employing around 2,300 people.

Valio has a cheese factory and employs 400 people in Russia, and Paulig has a coffee roastery and employs 200 people in the country.

Last week, non-NATO member Finland, which shares a border with Russia, agreed to strengthen security ties with the United States as it nervously watches Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

(Reporting by Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen; additional reporting by Essi Lehto, editing by Ed Osmond, Kirsten Donovan and Lincoln Feast.)

Tobacco group BAT suspends Russia capital investments, scales back marketing

Signage is seen at the London offices of British American Tobacco, in London, Britain

Wed, March 9, 2022
By Richa Naidu

LONDON (Reuters) - Camel and Lucky Strike cigarette maker British American Tobacco Plc said on Wednesday its business in Russia continued to operate, but that it had suspended all planned capital investment in the country following the Ukraine invasion.

BAT, which has 2,500 workers in Russia and major local manufacturing operations, also said it was "scaling our business activities appropriate to the current situation, including rationalising our marketing activities."

The Ukraine crisis has put pressure on multinational companies to take action, with a growing list of consumer products manufacturers distancing themselves from Russia this week.

BAT's announcement comes hours after Philip Morris International Inc suspended its planned investments in Russia and said it would scale down manufacturing in the country. Smaller London-listed rival Imperial Brands also said on Wednesday that it had paused operations in Russia.

Nestle, tobacco groups, gamemaker Sony join move away from Russia

Nestle logo is pictured on the door of the supermarket of Nestle headquarters in Vevey

Wed, March 9, 2022

(Reuters) - Nestle, Philip Morris and video gamemaker Sony joined the list of multinationals stepping back from Russia on Wednesday as pressure mounts from consumers in the West to take a stand against the invasion of Ukraine.

Nestle, the world's biggest packaged foods group, and Mondeleze International, followed actions by rivals Procter & Gamble and Unilever in halting investment in Russia.

But the four companies will continue providing essentials, with Mondelez aiming to help to maintain "continuity" of the Russian food supply.

Similarly, while cigarette maker Imperial Brands suspended operations in Russia, rival Philip Morris only said it would scale down manufacturing, and Camel maker British American Tobacco Plc said its business in Russia continued to operate, even though it had suspended capital investment.

Sony, whose movie studio has already stopped releases in Russia, took additional action on Wednesday, saying its PlayStation gaming unit would stop shipments and operations in Russia. "Sony Interactive Entertainment joins the global community in calling for peace in Ukraine," it said.

Many businesses face difficulty working in Russia due to sanctions and a lack of shipping, in addition to pressure from consumers and investors, and describe ending work in Russia in more practical terms, without blaming the Russian government for attacking Ukraine.

Heavy equipment maker Deere & Co, saying it was "deeply saddened by the significant escalation of events in Ukraine," announced it had ended shipments to Russia two weeks ago, and subsequently to Belarus, and said it would follow U.S. and international sanctions. Caterpillar Inc said it was suspending business as supply chain disruptions and sanctions made business difficult and 3M followed suit after reassessing its business in Russia.

Still, pressure in the West is building.

A Rio Tinto executive early in the day said the miner was working to maintain supplies of Russian fuel to its Mongolian copper mine, but the company later announced it was terminating all commercial relationships with Russian businesses.

Hotel companies Hilton Worldwide Holdings and Hyatt Hotels Corp said they would suspend development in Russia.

Coca-Cola Co and McDonald's Corp halted sales in Russia on Tuesday in symbolically potent gestures. A senior member of the Russian ruling party has warned that foreign firms that close down could end up having their operations nationalised.

McDonald's said the temporary closure of its 847 stores in the country would cost it $50 million a month.

Sportswear firm Adidas also quantified the cost of scaling back its operations, saying it would take a hit to sales of up to 250 million euros ($277 million).

Yum Brands Inc, parent of fried chicken giant KFC, said it was pausing investments in Russia, a market that helped it achieve record development last year.

Carlsberg said it was suspending Russian brewing of its namesake brand of beer while keeping its Russian Baltika brand operating.

"We feel a moral obligation to our Russian colleagues who are an integral part of Carlsberg, and who are not responsible for the actions of the Government," Carlsberg said, adding it was withdrawing financial guidance for the year.

E-commerce company Shopify Inc joined the crowd, saying it would suspend Russian operations and collect no fees from Ukrainian merchants, citing millions of Ukrainian refugees needing support.

'LAWS OF WAR'

In response to the exodus, Andrei Turchak, secretary of the ruling United Russia party's general council, warned Moscow might nationalise idled foreign assets.

"United Russia proposes nationalising production plants of the companies that announce their exit and the closure of production in Russia during the special operation in Ukraine," Turchak wrote in a statement published on the party's website on Monday.

The statement named Finnish privately owned food companies Fazer, Valio and Paulig as the latest to announce closures.

"We will take tough retaliatory measures, acting in accordance with the laws of war," Turchak said.

SANCTIONS

Moscow, which calls its invasion of Ukraine a "special military operation," has been hit by sweeping Western sanctions that have choked trade, led to the collapse of the rouble and further isolated the country.

Banks and billionaires have also been targeted, with the European Commission preparing new sanctions targeting additional Russian oligarchs and politicians, and three Belarusian banks, Reuters reported.

While the war in Ukraine and the sanctions have bolstered prices for commodities that Russia exports such as oil, natural gas and titanium, those sanctions have largely barred Moscow from taking advantage of the high prices.

On Tuesday the United States banned Russian oil imports.

U.S. oilfield services company Schlumberger, which derives about 5% of its revenue from Russia, said the ongoing conflict would likely hurt results this quarter.

Global commodities trader Trafigura Group raised a $1.2 billion revolving credit facility from banks to help address soaring energy and commodity prices.

Norway's Yara, a top fertiliser maker, said on Wednesday it would curtail ammonia and urea output in Italy and France due to surging gas prices.

($1 = 0.9037 euro)

(Reporting by Reuters bureaux, Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen, Rithika Krishna, Aishwarya Nair and Mrinalika Roy in Bengaluru, Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles, Bianca Flowers in Chicago, Denny Thomas in Toronto and Ernest Scheyder in Houston; Writing by Sayantani Ghosh, Paul Sandle and Peter Henderson; Editing by Jason Neely, Jane Merriman, Matthew Lewis and Lincoln Feast.)

Ukraine crisis: Which major Western fast food chains are still open in Russia?

Andy Wells
·Freelance Writer
Wed, March 9, 2022


The Ukraine crisis has seen many major brands suspend operation in Russia – including several fast food chains.

Following widespread criticism, Coca-Cola, Starbucks, and McDonald’s have joined others by halting business in Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine.

The three major brands all announced the move within hours of each other on Tuesday.

In a statement posted to its website, Starbucks announced it is “suspending all business activity in Russia”.

Dunkin' Donuts have stores still open in Russia. (Getty)

Papa John's stories remain open in Russia. (Getty)

Starbucks chief executive Kevin Johnson said in a statement posted on the website that the company condemns “the horrific attacks on Ukraine by Russia and our hearts go out to all those affected”.

It came just hours after McDonald’s announced the temporary closure of all restaurants in Russia in 850 different communities.

However, some fast food chains with stores in Russia appear to still be operating, with no immediate mention of halting business on company websites.

They are:


Burger King – 550 stores


Domino’s Pizza – 121 stores as of 2017


Papa John’s – 197 stores as of 2019


Subway – Around 600 stores


Dunkin’ Donuts – Around 20 stores

McDonald's has announced the closure of all its restaurants in Russia. (Getty)

KFC and Pizza Hut also have stores open in Russia but parent company Yum Brands Inc said they were finalising an agreement to suspend all Pizza Hut restaurant operations in Russia.

Seventy company-owned KFC stores are also set to close, while investment in Russia is set to be paused.

However, with at least 1,000 KFC stores in Russia, many will remain open but the majority are owned and operated independently through franchise agreements, meaning the company has significantly less control on closing those stores.

Yum Brands said in a statement: "Like so many across the world, we are shocked and saddened by the tragic events unfolding in Ukraine.

"Yum Brands has suspended all investment and restaurant development in Russia while we continue to assess additional options."

A man walks past a Domino's Pizza restaurant in Moscow, Russia. (Reuters)

Many KFC stores in Russia are independently owned and remain open. (Kirill Kukhmar\TASS via Getty)

Burger King stores in Russia remain open due to franchise issues. (Getty)

Similarly, Restaurant Brands International Inc, the parent company of Burger King, said that their more than 800 restaurants remain open in Russia as they are owned and operated by local franchisees.

A spokesperson for the company told Yahoo News UK that Burger King has committed $3m to immediately support Ukrainian refugees.

They added: “We are watching the attack on Ukraine and its people with horror and are focusing our efforts in the region on contributing to the safety of Ukrainians seeking shelter and security for their families.”

An apartment building damaged after shelling the day before in Ukraine's second-biggest city of Kharkiv. (Getty)

Domino’s Pizza, Papa John’s, Subway and Dunkin’ Donuts have all been contacted for comment.

In an article shared to the McDonald’s website on Tuesday – which was originally sent to employees and franchisees by email – CEO Chris Kempczinski said: “The conflict in Ukraine and the humanitarian crisis in Europe has caused unspeakable suffering to innocent people.”

Kempczinski said it would continue to pay the 62,000 employees in Russia although the company “cannot ignore the needless human suffering unfolding in Ukraine”.

The Growing Russia-India Relationship

by Ted Snider Posted onApril 28, 2023

The US has made much of its success in isolating Russia internationally. But that boast is hard to take too seriously when Russia is growing ever closer to the two largest countries in the world. While the world has been watching the "no limits" partnership between Russia and China grow into “a relationship that probably cannot be compared with anything in the world," Russia has been growing quietly closer to the second largest country in the world.

India has long been a close partner of Russia. In 2009, India and Russia signed the Joint Russian-Indian Declaration of Deepening and Strategic Partnership. In 2015, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Russia where the two sides agreed on a number of steps to enhance that partnership.

That partnership did not come apart under US pressure after Russia invaded Ukraine. Despite intense pressure from the US to "take a clear position" against Russia, India has refused to condemn Russia at the UN and has repeated Russia’s call to take "into account the legitimate security interests of all countries." India has also offered Russia an escape from sanctions by swelling from a country that once imported little Russian oil to a country that now has Russia as its top supplier of oil. India imported $41.56 billion from Russia in the last fiscal year, which is about five times its previous level. Before the war, Russia was India’s eighteenth largest import partner; since the war, Russia has become India’s fourth largest import partner.

And the partnership did not only not come apart, it grew stronger. On September 16, 2022, over half a year after the war in Ukraine began, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that "Relations between Russia and India have significantly improved." He called the friendship "extremely important." Seven months later, on April 16, 2023, Indian foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said the relationship with Russia had not changed, calling it "among the steadiest of the major relationships of the world in the contemporary era."

Russia’s March 31 new foreign policy concept states that "Russia will continue to build up a particularly privileged strategic partnership with the Republic of India in order to raise the level and expand cooperation in all areas."

And while the US is pushing a plan to ban all exports to Russia except those that are specifically exempted, India is defiantly following its independent path and continuing to strengthen its economic relationship with Russia. India and Russia have resumed discussions on a free trade agreement between India and the Russian led Eurasian Economic Commission that had been disrupted by COVID. The two countries are now engaged in "advanced negotiations" for a new bilateral investment treaty.

But the advancing relationship is not just based on trade. Beyond economics, Jaishankar said that India and Russia "share a commitment to a multi-polar world." The new Russian foreign policy concept also stressed that transforming "Eurasia into a continental common space of peace, stability, mutual trust, development and prosperity" necessitated the comprehensive strengthening of the SCO."

The SCO, or the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, is a massive international organization that includes Russia, China, India and Pakistan. It is the world’s second largest international organization after the UN, and its primary purpose is to re-balance the US led unipolar world into a multipolar world.

Along with Russia and China, India is also a member of BRICS, another important multipolar organization. Contained within BRICS is the core RIC group that traces its roots all the way back to 1996. In their joint statement of February 4, 2022, Russia and China stressed strengthening, not only the SCO and BRICS, but specifically "develop[ing] cooperation within the ‘Russia-India-China’ format." India has also called, not only for the general "strengthening of the BRICS Identity," but specifically for discussions on "further strengthening of RIC trilateral cooperation."

This year, India will host the SCO summit. In a further show of the growing relationship between Russia and India, Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to travel to India twice this year: once to the SCO summit and once to the G20 summit. The two countries expect to take advantage of the visits to make cooperation between them stronger. The visits make an additional statement following the International Criminal Court’s March 17 issuing of a warrant of arrest for Putin as a war criminal.

In a further evolution of the multipolar world, India seems interested in joining Russia and China in escaping from the hegemony of the US dollar. Speaking in India, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov expressed Russia’ interest in using "national currencies and currencies of friendly countries" for trade. Reuters reports that India, too, "has been keen on increasing the use of its rupee currency for trade with Russia." And, recently, India has begun purchasing some Russian oil in Russian rubles.

BRICS represents 40% of the world’s population, the SCO represents 43%, and both are growing. China and India make up more than a third of the population of the world. As Russia’s much discussed relationship with China and, importantly, its much less discussed relationship with India continue to grow, it is hard to take seriously the Western insistence that Russia is isolated and alone.

Ted Snider is a regular columnist on US foreign policy and history at Antiwar.com and The Libertarian Institute. He is also a frequent contributor to Responsible Statecraft and The American Conservative as well as other outlets.

Here’s a list of all the tech companies taking action against Russia

Ukraine has led a public campaign, mostly through social media, appealing powerful tech institutions to end relationships with Russia.

By SOPHIE FOGGIN and HELEN LI
12 MARCH 2022

Here’s a list of all the tech companies taking action against Russia

As the war in Ukraine rages on, with Russian forces edging closer to the capital, Kyiv, the global tech industry is joining governments and the international community in taking steps to punish Vladimir Putin. Dozens of companies, in Silicon Valley and around the world, are responding to Russia’s invasion by cutting the country off from their products, digital services, and systems.

We’ve put together a list of the companies that have taken action against Russia, and we’ll continue to update this in the days and weeks ahead.

Apple: The tech giant announced it will pause product sales in Russia due to its deep concern over the invasion of Ukraine. It has also limited access to its mobile payment service Apple Pay and restricted the availability of Russian state media apps, including RT and news agency Sputnik, for download outside of Russia. As a safety measure for Ukrainians, Apple has also disabled traffic and live incidents in Ukraine from Apple Maps.

Google: The company has removed Russian state-funded media, including RT, from its news-related features and the Google News search tool. It also paused Russian state media services’ ability to monetize through Google Ads on its websites and apps. In addition, it has banned Russian state media from using Google tools to buy ads and from placing ads on Google services, like Gmail. Google Pay, the company’s digital wallet, blocked several Russian financial institutions from its network.

Meta: The rebranded social network that owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp restricted access to RT and Sputnik within the EU and prohibited Russian state media from running ads or monetizing on its platforms anywhere in the world. Facebook also refused to stop fact-checking and labeling content from Russian state-owned news organizations — a move that the country called “censorship.”

YouTube: The Google-owned video-sharing website and social media platform paused Russian state media channels’ ability to make money through ads on videos.

Twitter: The social media network paused ads in Russia and Ukraine to ensure they don’t distract from public safety. (Meanwhile, Russia has restricted access to Twitter.)

TikTok: The video social media app TikTok restricted access to Russian state-controlled media accounts, including RT and Sputnik, in the EU. It also suspended its livestreaming services and content uploads from Russia, in the wake of the country’s “fake news” law that levies a punishment of up to 15 years in prison on those who publish false information about the military or publicly call for sanctions against Russia.

Netflix: The streaming platform has refused to air Russian state TV channels like Channel One on its streaming service. It later fully suspended service in Russia.

MIT: The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has cut ties with Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology, a Russian research university in Moscow.

TSMC: The world’s biggest semiconductor company, based in Taiwan, is halting chip sales to Russia, including Elbrus-branded chips designed in the country.

Intel: The American chipmaker halted sales to Russia.

AMD: Advanced Micro Devices also halted computer chip sales to Russia. Together with Intel, the two companies make up a large part of the desktop CPU market.

Dell Technologies: The computer maker vowed to suspend sales of its products in Russia and Ukraine, promising to closely monitor the situation to determine next steps.

Uber: The ride-hailing app is distancing itself from Russian ride-sharing service Yandex​​.Taxi and said it plans to “accelerate” the sale of its shares in the service.

Bolt: The European ride-hailing startup ceased operations in Belarus after Belarus supported Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Its delivery app, Bolt Market, removed “all products produced in Russia or associated with Russian companies.”

Snapchat: The social network said it will not display ads in Russia, Belarus, or Ukraine. The company also halted all ad sales in Russia and Belarus.

Viber: Japan’s Rakuten Group, the owner of the popular messaging app, said that it will remove advertising from its app in Russia.

Roku: The company, which makes streaming boxes for TVs, said it will ban Russia’s state-run news channel RT in Europe.

Microsoft: The tech giant said it will remove Russian state-owned media apps from its Windows app store and not run ads on state-owned media websites. It is also suspending all new product sales in Russia, which include Xbox consoles.

Electronic Arts: The major video game publisher said it will remove the Russian national team and Russian club teams from the most recent FIFA games. It will also remove Russian and Belarusian national and club ice hockey teams from the latest NHL game.

Nokia: The Finnish network equipment maker announced it will stop deliveries to Russia, in order to comply with sanctions imposed on the country.

Ericsson: The Swedish telecomms company will also suspend its deliveries to Russia, according to an internal memo from the company’s CEO reviewed by Reuters.

PayPal: The online payments company has stopped accepting new users from Russia. It had previously blocked some users and some Russian banks.

GoDaddy: The web hosting company no longer supports new registrations for domains with the .ru extension, which represents Russia.

Spotify: The music streaming service closed its Russia office “indefinitely” and removed all content by RT and Sputnik in Europe and other regions. It has also restricted shows “owned or operated by Russian state media.”

Oracle: The cloud services giant suspended operations in Russia following Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov’s plea to the company to stop doing business in Russia “until the conflict is resolved.”

SAP: The German software corporation stopped sales of its products and services to Russia to align with sanctions against the country.

DuckDuckGo: The privacy-focused search engine paused its partnership with Russian search engine Yandex.

Reddit: The site banned users from posting links to Russian state-sponsored media outlets.

Airbnb: The platform halted operations in Russia and Belarus.

CD Projekt Red: The Polish game company announced that it will stop selling games in Russia and Belarus, including from its online game marketplace GOG.com.

Sony: The electronics giant is not releasing its flagship PlayStation driving game, Gran Turismo 7, in Russia.

Adobe: The software company stopped all of its sales and services in Russia. It also cut off Russian state media outlets’ access to Adobe Creative Cloud, Adobe Document Cloud, and Adobe Experience Cloud.

Coursera: The online course provider suspended all of its content from Russian universities and industry partners. It also stopped business with Russian institutions.

Samsung: The electronics giant suspended product shipments to Russia.

Siemens: The tech conglomerate suspended business in and deliveries to Russia.

HP: Russia’s largest PC supplier stopped exports to the country.

Sophie Foggin is a Colombia-based journalist covering human rights and social issues.

Helen Li is the producer of Fresh Off the Vote, a podcast on politics and civic engagement among Asian American youth.

 

The Arctic Geopolitics In Disarray: 

Fallout Of The Ukraine War – Analysis

 March 7, 2022 

By K.M. Seethi

When environmental scientist Jessica Moerman said, “What happens in the Arctic doesn’t stay in the Arctic,” she was only referring to the sensitive polar region’s role as the “frontline for climate change.” Moerman reminded: “It may seem like it’s far away, but the impacts come knocking on our front door.” 

Moerman’s forewarning has significant geopolitical dimensions today with the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the consequent twists and turns in the Arctic political and strategic landscape. Amid fears and anxieties, a major question is whether the Arctic will become another theatre of great power rivalry in the emerging conflict between the West and Russia.  

Currently, the Arctic Council, headed by Russia has five NATO members (Canada, Denmark, Iceland, Norway, and the United States), and two of the western allies (Finland and Sweden) are also members of the eight-member inter-governmental body. There are eight other European countries in the Council with observer status. Besides India and China, there are three other (Asian) observer countries in the Council. The composition of the Council itself is an indication of the shape of things to come. 

In the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, seven of the eight Arctic states declared that they would be halting the work of the Arctic Council. It was only last year (May 2021) that Russia assumed the chairmanship of the Council. These Arctic states also condemned Russia’s “unprovoked invasion” of Ukraine and emphasised “the grave impediments to international cooperation, including in the Arctic,” in a joint statement. It was also reported that all working group meetings would be halted indefinitely and no officials from these Arctic Council members would visit Russia for any consultation or deliberation in view of Moscow’s “flagrant violation” of territorial sovereignty and international law. The Director of the Center of Arctic Security and Resilience called this action “the Arctic seven speaking with one voice.”

However, even as Russia’s role as the chairperson is now under challenge, the other seven Arctic Council members—Canada, the Kingdom of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and the United States—and the council’s working groups are reported to have considered alternative ways to continue critical work in the region. But, according to Sherri Goodman, former U.S. deputy undersecretary of defense and a senior fellow at the Wilson Center’s Polar Institute, “there’s no forum for dialogue and discussion with Russia, the largest Arctic country, on matters that affect the people, the ecology, the geography of the Arctic.” Goodman also warned that the consequence of Russia’s invasion might “increase the risk of miscommunication and miscalculation in the North, at a time where Arctic activities are increasing.”

Plausibly, after the military take over of Crimea in 2014, Russia was not allowed to take part in any Arctic meetings on security (this included the Arctic Forces Security Roundtable) even as the Arctic Council was not mandated to handle security issues. Experts, however, fear that President Vladimir Putin may continue to remain unpredictable and his order to put nuclear forces “on high alert” has obviously intensified the threat scenario in the Arctic also. In response to the seven-members’ resolution to halt the Council’s work, Moscow’s Arctic senior officials warned that any temporary freeze would “inevitably lead to the accumulation of the risks and challenges to soft security in the region.”

Sanction Forays in the Arctic 

While the Western sanctions continued to shake the various sectors of the Russian economy, many major oil investors and firms also came out with statements that they would be pulling out of Russian resource development or may not continue with new projects with Russia, including in the Arctic. The first such announcement came from BP when it said that the company would exit its 19.75 per cent shareholding in Russia’s Rosneft and ordered its directors “to resign from the Rosneft board with immediate effect.” BP Chair Helge Lund said: “Russia’s attack on Ukraine is an act of aggression which is having tragic consequences across the region. BP has operated in Russia for over 30 years, working with brilliant Russian colleagues. However, this military action represents a fundamental change. It has led the bp board to conclude, after a thorough process, that our involvement with Rosneft, a state-owned enterprise, simply cannot continue.”  

BP’s decision is expected to have a major impact on Russia’s huge Vostok oil project in the Arctic. BP is known for its expertise in offshore development and, more importantly, its financing has been critical to Rosneft’s Arctic extraction project. Similarly, Equinor, Norway’s international energy firm, which has its projects in as many as 30 countries worldwide, including several of the world’s most important oil and gas provinces, such as in Russia, declared that it will stop new investments in Russia and will exit joint ventures. Anders Opedal, President and CEO of Equinor, said: “We are all deeply troubled by the invasion of Ukraine, which represents a terrible setback for the world, and we are thinking of all those who are suffering because of the military action.” The Norwegian energy firm has been in Russia for over three decades and had entered into a cooperation agreement with Rosneft in 2012. 

Like BP and Equinor, Shell also announced its “intention to exit its joint ventures with Gazprom and related entities, including its 27.5 per cent stake in the Sakhalin-II liquefied natural gas facility, its 50 per cent stake in the Salym Petroleum Development and the Gydan energy venture.” It also sought “to end its involvement in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project.”  Shell’s chief executive officer, Ben van Beurden, said that “We are shocked by the loss of life in Ukraine, which we deplore, resulting from a senseless act of military aggression which threatens European security.”

ExxonMobil, one of the world’s largest publicly traded energy providers and chemical manufacturers, which operates the Sakhalin-1 project on behalf of an international consortium of Japanese, Indian, and Russian companies, said that they were “beginning the process to discontinue operations and developing steps to exit the Sakhalin-1 venture.” The company also announced that under “the current situation, ExxonMobil will not invest in new developments in Russia.”

India’s state-run Oil India Ltd (OIL) also said “it has no immediate plan to invest in Russia, indicating uncertainty on investment in the massive Vostok project of Russia’s PJSC Rosneft Oil Co., which it was eyeing through a consortium,” according to the Mint report. A consortium of ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL), Indian Oil Corp. Ltd (IOC), and OIL was planning to invest jointly in the massive Vostok project of Rosneft. India was also exploring to invest in Novatek’s Arctic LNG-2 project as part of its energy profile expansion. Though India is soft on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, its foreign ventures in Russia are subject to the pulls and pressures of the West and its international sanction. 

The Wall Streat Journal reported that Norges Bank Investment Management, the world’s largest sovereign-wealth fund is “divesting its Russian holdings.” Norges, the arm of the Norwegian central bank that operates the $1.3 trillion fund, announced that it would be “freezing investments in Russia.” The Norwegian government also announced a range of actions being taken to support Ukraine, including allocating funds for humanitarian aid, joining European Union sanctions and withdrawing the oil fund from Russian investments. Norway being a member of NATO is also committed to providing military equipment to Ukraine.

Singapore-based Trafigura, one of the world’s leading independent commodity trading and logistics houses, said that it “immediately froze its investments in Russia. The firm also announced that it was “now reviewing the options in respect of our passive shareholding in Vostok Oil.” 

TotalEnergies, a major multi-energy firm that produces and markets energies on a global scale, which also has a major stake in Russia, condemned Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine, which it said would have “tragic consequences for the population and threatens Europe.” The firm announced: “TotalEnergies supports the scope and strength of the sanctions put in place by Europe and will implement them regardless of the consequences (currently being assessed) on its activities in Russia. TotalEnergies will no longer provide capital for new projects in Russia.” The war in Ukraine also led Italy to put on hold its share of financing for the $21 billion Arctic LNG 2 project led by privately-owned Russian gas producer Novatek,   

Given the tempo of withdrawals, freezing and halting resorted to by the Western firms in the Arctic energy sector, Russia might explore alternative channels for investment and exploration. China could be a possible investor, but it is not yet clear, in spite of its political support to Moscow, whether Beijing would come up with major investments in the energy sector in Russia to offset the sanctions. 

However, trends in China-Russia trade may provide some indication that there could be some possibilities. According to a report, bilateral trade between the two countries exceeded the $100-billion mark for three successive years, and China continued to be Russia’s top trading partner. The report says that energy and agricultural trade witnessed a steady growth, with Russia emerging a top energy supplier for China and agricultural exports reaching a record high of $5.55 billion. Yet, in terms of investment, Russia ranked only No.13 among foreign destinations for Chinese investment at $12.8 billion (two years back), according to the Chinese official data. But experts suggested that the figure could be raised to a “much higher level, given the massive opportunities in a wide range of areas, including energy, agriculture, manufacturing and technology.” 

Meanwhile, Chinese experts continued to put the full blame of the Ukrainian crisis on the West. For instance, an analyst writes in Global Times: 

Russia didn’t initiate the current war in Ukraine. Russia is ending the 8-year war triggered by the pro-Western Ukrainian regime in 2014 when Donbass broke up refusing to accept the violation of the Ukrainian Constitution that is the coup-d’etat sponsored by Brussels and Washington. 

The aim of the West is as clear as a day — to encircle Russia with unfriendly regimes alongside its borders, strangle it with that military loop and force to stick in the geopolitical quagmire for decades. Being involved in continual counteractions with such regimes, Moscow would have less political, diplomatic, military and economic resources for acting on other directions, for example, in post-Soviet part of Eurasia, Arctic, the Middle East.

The analysist continues: Washington’s strategy is to oust Russia from the access to warm seas such as the Black Sea, the Caspian Sea and the Baltic Sea and impede the political and economic communication between Russia and the world. Ousting Russia from the seas would mean that for the time being the Anglo-Saxons continue to be the only power able to control the world’s oceans. They will preserve this position as long as they can deter Russia and China away from the main ocean routes accessible from the seas like the South China Sea. 

The author, who is said to be a Ukrainian expert located in Russia, further writes: “Trade diversions against China is another of Washington’s dreams. Western experts continually put forth different kinds of tactics on how to split up the unity of Russia and China.” 

However, it remains to be seen if this ‘unity’ is sustainable in the context of the huge energy sector in Russia getting affected. According to Goodman, “there may be long-term consequences from these moves to disinvest, especially in an increasing shift to renewable energy.” She said that as “the Russian Arctic oil and gas reserves increasingly become stranded assets with the EU and U.S. accelerating their green transition, Russia’s both economic power and leverage power will eventually decrease.” 

Nord Stream 2 Episode 

A major setback for Russia, in the wake of its intervention Ukraine, came when Germany stopped the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea gas pipeline project, constructed to augment the flow of Arctic Russian gas direct to Germany. The $12 billion project was completed last year pending certification by Germany and the European Union. This project was announced way back in 2015 amid threats of sanctions by Western countries following Russia’s annexation of Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine and its support to the rebels in the Donbass. Even as Germany continued to argue that Nord Stream 2 was a commercial venture, Ukraine tended to see it as an “existential threat because it eases Moscow’s reliance on Ukraine to ship gas to lucrative European markets.” Ukraine argued that it would lose billions of dollars in transit revenue. 

Washington also believed that the project would reinforce Russia’s sway over Europe. It knew that Russia was already providing 40 per cent of the EU’s total gas supply and that the new pipeline would increase that amount by as much as “55 billion cubic meters per annum.” Hence it continued to oppose the construction and did everything possible to sink the Nord Stream 2 project. As Joe Biden assumed office, efforts were underway to revive the strained relations with Germany. Yet, Germany was resisting Washington’s pressure saying that the U.S. cannot be a substitute for Russia given its geopolitical proximity and reduced transaction costs. However, the situation began to change for the worse with Putin’s action in eastern Ukraine. It was at this time that U.S. had warned that it would suspend the project amid reports of Russian invasion.  On 23 February, the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken applauded “Germany’s decision to take administrative steps to halt the certification process for Nord Stream 2, which will prevent the pipeline from becoming operational.” He said: “This action is in line with the United States’ longstanding opposition to Nord Stream 2 as a Russian geopolitical project and the President’s commitment that Nord Stream 2 would not move forward following the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”  

Following this, the German subsidiary of the Nord Stream 2 operator—Gas for Europe GmbH—announced “its possible liquidation due to current events around the project.” However, amid all developments in Ukraine, Russia continued to argue that Nord Stream 2 was only “a commercial project and is being implemented jointly with European partners.” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told in an interview that the “situation around the Nord Stream 2 showed that Europe holds an absolutely subordinate and dependent place at the global stage.” But Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine has not helped her realise its dream of dominating the European energy market. 

Geopolitical Challenges 

With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Arctic has become a new terrain of big power rivalry with the U.S., Russia and China contemplating to employ military and economic power to secure and sustain access to the region at the expense of the polar region’s ecosystem. The U.S. National Security Strategy sought to upgrade  the Arctic “as a corridor for expanded strategic great power competition between two regions – the Indo-Pacific and Europe.” 

It may be recalled that in March 2021, the U.S. Army brought out its new Arctic strategy under the heading, “Regaining Arctic Dominance.”  According to the document, the Army must “organize to win in the Arctic” and that the region represents “an arena of competition, a line of attack in conflict, a vital area holding many … natural resources, and a platform for global power projection.” An article in The Arctic Institute says that the US Army strategy adhered to other publications from the Government of Canada, the Norwegian military, the United States Navy, and other Arctic and non-Arctic state institutions “committed to increased military engagement in the circumpolar north.” According to Jen Evans, “these ambitious new Arctic security policies are more than just saber-rattling: NATO doubled Arctic military activities from 2015 to 2020 and Russia has assigned at least 81% of its nuclear weaponry to northern fleets, all in the name of (re)gaining Arctic dominance.” Evans also recalled, “the Arctic remained a pivotal military theater throughout the Cold War. During this period, the Arctic was characterized by high levels of militarization, which included the regional placement of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), long-range bombers, nuclear weapons, and a host of additional military resources.” 

Strategic thinktanks also noted Russia’s growing interest in the Arctic. SIPRI, for example, had brought out a background paper in 2016 which noted that the “rift between the West and Russia—due to Russia’s intervention in Ukraine from early 2014 and Russia’s more assertive or aggressive foreign policy—has made the other Arctic countries more concerned about the aims of Russia’s military modernization in the Arctic.” Some analysts had seen “this Russia–West confrontation as a new driver of militarization in the Arctic and as increasing the possibility of tensions between NATO and Russia spilling over to the Arctic.” As the SIPRI background paper noted, Russia’s Arctic policies are now available in two documents: The Foundations of the Russian Federation’s State Policy in the Arctic until 2020 and Beyond, adopted in September 2008; and The Strategy for the Development of the Arctic Zone of the Russian Federation and National Security Efforts for the Period up to 2020, adopted in 2013.  

These two documents underline the significance of the Arctic as a major storehouse of natural resources by 2020 and the security challenges emerging from the enhanced accessibility of the Arctic region. Basically, these documents focussed on non-military challenges and underline the importance of cooperation among all Arctic states in dealing with the region’s issues. However, the Arctic also appears more specifically in military and security documents, such as Russian Military Doctrine (December 2014), Maritime Doctrine (July 2015) which highlight “specific military maritime security concerns, with a strong focus on the security of the bases and units of the Northern Fleet in the Arctic.” 

A Report of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Political Committee, NATO and Security in the Arctic (October 2017) noted that Russian violations of the territorial integrity of Ukraine, Georgia, and the Republic of Moldova have raised concerns over territorial conflicts between Russia and the rest of the Arctic states.” The Report says that “Moscow, as the largest Arctic littoral state, recognises the geostrategic importance of the Arctic and vital Arctic energy resources, and has built up its military to protect what it perceives as Russian territorial interests in the region. Russian disregard for the territorial integrity of peaceful neighbours cannot be ignored in the High North.” It also pointed out that in “the aftermath of the annexation of Crimea, Russia’s Arctic build-up is viewed more sceptically by other littoral states. Moreover, as a result of Russia’s military build-up in the High North, its ability to limit or deny access and control various parts of the region has increased significantly.” The Report further noted that China was “interested in the exploitation of the sea lanes that will slowly open up as a result of global warming. Moreover, China is also interested in strengthening its ability as a non-Arctic state to access Arctic mineral resources and fishing waters. The PRC has taken steps over the past several years to protect its interests in the High North, pursuing a presence in Svalbard, Iceland, and Greenland.” It may be noted that China had come out with its Arctic policy in 2018 assuming itself as a ‘Near-Arctic state’ with a grand ambition of building a ‘Polar Silk Road.’ It is here that both China and Russia have a great interest in developing ‘Northern Sea Route’ (NSR) as a new geopolitical circuit connecting with Europe and beyond. 

In short, at the heart of the problem is the geopolitical contiguity of big powers linked by the Arctic region—compounded further by the quest for energy security and the resultant rivalry for control over the trade circuits. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has only deepened the security issues in the Arctic, and the consequences of this war will be more enduring than anything else in the preceding decades. 

The author, an ICSSR Senior Fellow, is Academic Advisor to the International Centre for Polar Studies (ICPS) and Director, Inter University Centre for Social Science Research and Extension (IUCSSRE), Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala.  

K.M. Seethi is Director, Inter University Centre for Social Science Research and Extension (IUCSSRE), Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala. He also served as Dean of Social Sciences and Professor of International Relations and Politics, Mahatma Gandhi University. He frequently writes for ‘Global South Colloquy.’ He can be contacted at kmseethimgu@gmail.com