Nokia Is Pulling Out of Russia
Finnish tech company Nokia has decided to pull out of Russia, in a decision that will come as a major blow to both the Russian government and the Federal Security Service (FSB).
As Reuters reports, Nokia CEO Pekka Lundmark explained that, "We just simply do not see any possibilities to continue in the country under the current circumstances."
The decision isn't surprising considering the growing list of companies that have already ceased operations in Russia due to President Putin's actions and the invasion of Ukraine. However, Russia is thought to rely heavily on Nokia's technology throughout its network infrastructure and for spying on its own citizens, so this will have a bigger impact than many of the other tech companies who are leaving.
Nokia was expecting to enter a joint venture with Russian technology company YADRO to build 4G and 5G telecom base stations in the country. That venture is no longer going ahead. Pulling out of Russia also means the government's recent attempts to convince Nokia to setup factories in the country using Russian equipment have completely failed.
Nokia says it will continue to support customers in Russia as it leaves, but doesn't know how long the exit will take. Any support offered will be done within the confines of what current and future sanctions allow, which means it will be very limited. Around 2,000 employees will be impacted, only some of whom are expected to be offered jobs outside of Russia.
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