A global coalition of businesses has united in support of the people of Ukraine and against Putin’s brutal invasion. As of May 4, this tracking list identifies 674 companies that have announced actions to either withdraw entirely or materially reduce their operations within Russia. 180 have still not pulled out of the Russian market.
https://coalitionforukraine.com/
· After placing export restrictions to Russia, Taiwan has also restricted exports of high-tech goods to Belarus. The Taiwanese government has imposed controls on technology exports to Belarus, with restrictions prohibiting Taiwanese companies from exporting a wide range of technology products without special permission.
The export control list includes equipment for semiconductor production – an industry where Taiwan is a world leader, as well as lasers and navigation systems. It is designed to prevent the use of technology for military purposes. [9:26am 8-5-2022 Kyiv]
· South Korea’s largest cryptocurrencies block Russian IP addresses.
UPBIT, Korea’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, explained the blockade by a recommendation from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
The stock exchange said it could reject requests for withdrawals if it turned out to be related to Russia.
Another Korean exchange, GOPAX, froze about 20 accounts registered by Russian users and banned IP addresses from Russia. BITHUMB and KORBIT also blocked access from Russian IP addresses, “the agency writes. 12:45pm 8-5-2022 Kyiv]
· Russian forces are expropriating for themselves oil from the Ukrainian Pologi Oil Extraction Plant in the Zaporizhia region, which the plant was preparing for shipment to foreign partners.
Russian forces keep ignoring established international laws to which Russia is a party. Ombudsman Liudmila Denisova’s pointed out that the theft of food from occupied territories was a violation of the 1949 Geneva Convention related to the Protection of
Civilian Persons in Time of War and War Crimes under Article 8 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. [1:41pm 8-5-2022 Kyiv]
· The EU is considering a ban on insurance of ships carrying Russian oil.
The Wall Street Journal writes that the EU is considering banning the insurance of ships carrying Russian oil as part of a new package of sanctions. [3:18pm 8-5-2022 Kyiv]
· German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said that Russia’s war against Ukraine put an end to the idea of a common European home, voiced by Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev.
On May 5, Steinmeier had a telephone conversation with President Volodymyr Zelensky, during which he assured of Germany’s full support for Ukraine. According to Steinmeier’s spokeswoman, all misunderstandings from the past have been resolved “and Zelensky invited the federal president and chancellor to Ukraine. [4:22pm 8-5-2022 Kyiv]
· Hungary continues to block new sanctions against Russia.
The abandonment of Russian oil could be a particular challenge for Hungary, Slovakia and Bulgaria, which buy the resource mainly from Russia. In general, Russian oil accounts for 25% of the EU’s oil imports, while gas – 40%.
It needs to be noted that the sixth package of sanctions against the Russian Federation provides gradual introduction of an embargo on oil and oil products from the Russian Federation. [5:18pm 8-5-2022 Kyiv]
· Google has begun blocking the accounts of members of the Russian DUMA who have come under sanctions. [6:29pm 8-5-2022 Kyiv]
· South Korean airline Korean Airlines has decided to continue the suspension of flights to Russia until the situation between Russia and Ukraine stabilizes.
In March, the airline suspended flights to Moscow and Vladivostok until the end of April for security reasons amid a worsening geopolitical situation due to Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine. [8:10pm 8-5-2022 Kyiv]
· Canada has abolished all tariffs on Ukrainian goods for a year.
As Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pointed out: “This is a good continuation of the EU-Britain initiative, which confirms the interest of developed countries in involving the Ukrainian economy in their own industrial and trade chains. ” [10:31pm 8-5-2022 Kyiv]