Microsoft stops selling all services and products in Russia

Microsoft will immediately stop selling products and services in Russia. The American company says it is in line with sanctions from the governments of the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom, among others.

Denying the possibility to further purchase Microsoft products in Russia is “the best way to support Ukraine”, according to the company. Microsoft does not rule out taking further steps should the situation in Eastern European countries get even further out of hand. “Like the rest of the world, we are shocked, angry and saddened by the images and news of the war in Ukraine. We condemn the unjust, unprovoked and illegal invasion by Russia.”

Microsoft acted in various ways shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. For example, the company proactively helped with the cybersecurity of the latter country. The multi-billion dollar company claims to have started defending Ukraine’s cyberfront line soon after the initial attack; a massive wiper virus was allegedly released on government agencies across the country, updating Microsoft’s antivirus programs within hours. In addition, the company limits the spread of Russian propaganda and matches employee donations to humanitarian organizations.

In addition to Microsoft, many other tech giants currently support the Ukrainian government or are hindered by the intervention of those companies. For example, Intel and AMD stopped chip sales in the country, Elon Musk’s Starlink provided free satellite internet receivers and Google stopped showing ads for YouTube videos in Russia.