Cisco withdraws from Russian market
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Cisco withdraws from Russian market

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Cisco has ended its operations in Russia and Belarus in response to the war in Ukraine, the company announced on Thursday.

The company initially suspended its business operations in Russia in March.

The firm joined the likes of Nike and Renault in permanently departing from the territory after the initial suspension.

In a statement released yesterday, the firm stated: "We have now made the decision to begin an orderly wind-down of our business in Russia and Belarus.”

It added that it aims to "communicate directly with customers, partners, and vendors to settle our financial matters, including refunding prepaid service and software arrangements, to the extent permissible under applicable laws and regulations."

A foreign law allowing Moscow to seize business assets from companies operating in the country came into force in recent weeks, subsequently forcing them to accelerate their departure.

This law allows Russia to appoint its own administrators for companies owned by foreign owners in countries it deems as “unfriendly”.

IBM and Microsoft had already permanently withdrawn from the market meaning Russia may now have to depend on older equipment or domestic alternatives.

Cisco told investors earlier this year that its decision to cease its Russian operations would cost it US$200 million in Q3 of this year.

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