Microsoft announced this Friday (4) that it has suspended the sale of products, software and services in Russia due to the war in Ukraine.
The technology giant founded by Bill Gates adds to the list of companies that have paralyzed activities on Russian soil in retaliation for the conflict in Eastern Europe.
“Like the rest of the world, we are horrified, outraged and saddened by the images and news coming from the war in Ukraine and we condemn this unwarranted, unprovoked and illegal invasion of Russia,” the company said in a statement posted on its official website.
In addition to suspending new sales, Microsoft also said it was “working in tandem” with the US, European Union and UK governments, which are largely responsible for an extensive list of tough economic sanctions on Russia.
“We believe that we are most effective in helping Ukraine when we take concrete steps in coordination with decisions made by these governments, and we will take additional steps as this situation continues to evolve.”
Last Monday, the company had already announced that it would ban Russian state-owned media outlets from its platforms. Microsoft Start, which runs MSN.com, stopped showing content sponsored by the Russian government, and the Windows web store removed news apps.
The Bing search engine was also reconfigured to warn about pages linked to the Russian government.
Microsoft also announced that it is working on cybersecurity solutions to protect Ukraine from Russian cyberattacks and said it would “continue to mobilize resources to help Ukrainians”.
“Our philanthropy teams are working closely with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and UN agencies to help refugees, providing technology and financial support to leading NGOs and, where necessary, defending these groups from cyber attacks in progress.”
The list of companies, especially Western ones, that are leaving Russian soil only grows. Adidas, Apple, Visa, Mastercard, automakers and oil companies have already started retaliation.
*Under supervision of Thamara Kaoru
Source: CNN Brasil
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