Sanctions against Russia
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Neutral?
On 13 April, in light of Russia’s ongoing military aggression against Ukraine, the Swiss Federal Council decided to fully adopt the new sanctions introduced by the EU in its fifth sanctions package against Russia on 8 April (see blog post here). The Ordinance on Measures connected with the Situation in Ukraine (the “Ordinance”) will now be revised accordingly. It will be published and enter into force some time after the Easter Holidays.
The new EU measures target trade, finance and transport. In the area of trade, measures include a ban on the import of coal and other goods that serve as important sources of revenue for Russia (such as wood, cement, seafood and vodka), and an export ban on kerosene and other goods that could contribute to strengthening Russia’s industrial capacity (including industrial robots and certain chemicals).
In the area of financial restrictions, the new EU measures include a ban on the participation of Russian companies in public procurement, a ban on financial support for Russian public institutions and further new financial measures, particularly aimed at trusts.
The new EU measures targeting transport namely include a ban on Russian and Belarusian road transport undertakings preventing them from transporting goods by road within the EU, and a ban on access to EU ports for Russian vessels. The Federal Council has announced that Switzerland will not be adopting these transport bans, deeming them unnecessary due to Switzerland’s geographic location.
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Interesting editorial from Moscow Times. In my opinion, not off the mark either:
https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2022/04/20/the-four-russias-and-ukraine-a77423
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Ruh Roh...
Dell, Apple, Netflix face lawsuits for pulling services out of Russia
A Moscow Arbitration Court has reportedly seized almost $11 million belonging to Dell LLC after the company failed to provide paid-for services to a local system integrator.
IT systems integrator Talmer sued Dell early last month when the American computer giant declined to provide technical support services for VMware as previously agreed. Dell is the representative of VMware in Russia and was reselling these services until March 1, 2022.
The Moscow-based firm had reportedly paid Dell for these services beforehand, but since they never got them, this was a breach of the service terms.
The sanctions imposed against Russia by the Western world and the public sentiment forced companies like Dell and VMware to curtail their operations.
“At the same time, despite the termination of the provision of services by WMware in the Russian Federation, the defendant did not take any action on an alternative method of fulfilling obligations and did not return the advance payments to Talmer LLC,” specifies the court ruling according to Russian outlets that have reproduced it.
Due to this ruling, the Russian courts seized 778,526,223 rubles from local bank accounts, which is currently valued at about $10,900,000.
The ruling can be appealed to the Ninth Arbitration Court of Appeal within a month, but Dell didn’t comment if it’s planning to exercise that right.
When asking for comment regarding the seizure, a Dell spokesperson told BleepingComputer that they do not comment on pending litigation.
Late last month, Apple faced a similar legal issue after a Russian law firm filed a class action for breach of contract, seeking damages of 90 million rubles, approximately $1,290,000.
The lawsuit claims that Apple unilaterally pulled its payment service from the country, Apple Pay, depriving Russian iOS users of a feature that was marketed to them and which they expected to enjoy indefinitely when they bought their iPhones.
Apple’s move has essentially degraded the value of the iPhone in Russia, which further raises the total damages that can be sought, with the law firm demanding a fine of 50% of the compensation amount for moral damages too.
The same law office has filed a class-action lawsuit against Netflix in April for similar reasons of breach of user terms, demanding a compensation of 60 million rubles ($860,000).
I wonder how the Russian courts will rule in this.
"Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08
The saying, "Lite is just one damn thing after another," is a gross understatement. The damn things overlap.
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Ruh Roh...
Dell, Apple, Netflix face lawsuits for pulling services out of Russia
A Moscow Arbitration Court has reportedly seized almost $11 million belonging to Dell LLC after the company failed to provide paid-for services to a local system integrator.
IT systems integrator Talmer sued Dell early last month when the American computer giant declined to provide technical support services for VMware as previously agreed. Dell is the representative of VMware in Russia and was reselling these services until March 1, 2022.
The Moscow-based firm had reportedly paid Dell for these services beforehand, but since they never got them, this was a breach of the service terms.
The sanctions imposed against Russia by the Western world and the public sentiment forced companies like Dell and VMware to curtail their operations.
“At the same time, despite the termination of the provision of services by WMware in the Russian Federation, the defendant did not take any action on an alternative method of fulfilling obligations and did not return the advance payments to Talmer LLC,” specifies the court ruling according to Russian outlets that have reproduced it.
Due to this ruling, the Russian courts seized 778,526,223 rubles from local bank accounts, which is currently valued at about $10,900,000.
The ruling can be appealed to the Ninth Arbitration Court of Appeal within a month, but Dell didn’t comment if it’s planning to exercise that right.
When asking for comment regarding the seizure, a Dell spokesperson told BleepingComputer that they do not comment on pending litigation.
Late last month, Apple faced a similar legal issue after a Russian law firm filed a class action for breach of contract, seeking damages of 90 million rubles, approximately $1,290,000.
The lawsuit claims that Apple unilaterally pulled its payment service from the country, Apple Pay, depriving Russian iOS users of a feature that was marketed to them and which they expected to enjoy indefinitely when they bought their iPhones.
Apple’s move has essentially degraded the value of the iPhone in Russia, which further raises the total damages that can be sought, with the law firm demanding a fine of 50% of the compensation amount for moral damages too.
The same law office has filed a class-action lawsuit against Netflix in April for similar reasons of breach of user terms, demanding a compensation of 60 million rubles ($860,000).
I wonder how the Russian courts will rule in this.
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Chump change. I'm pretty sure these companies knew this, or something very much like it, would happen.
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No Big Mac for you!
McDonald’s Corp. said it would quit Russia and sell its business there, ending more than three decades in the country over its invasion of Ukraine.
The company said it expected to record a charge of between $1.2 billion and $1.4 billion in connection with the move.
McDonald’s said it was pursuing the sale of its entire portfolio of restaurants in Russia to a local buyer. The restaurants there have been closed since early March. The company said it was continuing to pay the salaries of its employees in the country, of which there are about 60,000.
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No Big Mac for you!
McDonald’s Corp. said it would quit Russia and sell its business there, ending more than three decades in the country over its invasion of Ukraine.
The company said it expected to record a charge of between $1.2 billion and $1.4 billion in connection with the move.
McDonald’s said it was pursuing the sale of its entire portfolio of restaurants in Russia to a local buyer. The restaurants there have been closed since early March. The company said it was continuing to pay the salaries of its employees in the country, of which there are about 60,000.
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Sanctions seem to have trickled down to some:
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Is this a big deal?
Canada Announces Ban On Export Of Services Vital For Russian Oil, Gas & Chemical Sector
In response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Canada on Wednesday, 8 June, announced sanctions against the export of 28 services "vital" for the operation of the oil, gas, and chemical industries, including accounting and advertising. The ban on exports of oil, gas and chemical services targets industries that are estimated to have about 50% of Russia's budget revenues.
The latest round of sanctions has been announced by the Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Melania Joly.
According to the Canadian government's release, the sanctions have been announced by Canada to exert further pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to withdraw its forces from Ukraine. In the release, the Canadian government stressed that they continue to believe that "Ukrainians deserve to live in peace" and called on the Russian administration to stop the war in Ukraine.
According to the release, the sanctions will decrease the ability of Russia to wage war against Ukraine. The Canadian government in the release said that they have imposed sanctions against more than 1,070 individuals and entities since Russia began its offensive in Ukraine. Melanie Joly in the release said that the Russian military offensive in Ukraine continues for more than 100 days. Joly added that they will make every effort to prevent Russia's ability to fund its "war machine." Ever since Russian military offensive in Ukraine, Canada has been providing military and humanitarian assistance to Kyiv.
