Russia-Ukraine war: Apple halts all product sales in Russia amid Ukraine invasion

Russia-Ukraine war: Apple halts all product sales in Russia amid Ukraine invasion

FPJ Web DeskUpdated: Wednesday, March 02, 2022, 10:02 AM IST
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American technology company Apple on Tuesday said it had stopped sales of all product in Russia after Moscow invaded Ukraine.

"We have paused all product sales in Russia. Last week, we stopped all exports into our sales channel in the country," Apple said, reported Reuters.

"We are supporting humanitarian efforts, providing aid for the unfolding refugee crisis, and doing all we can to support our teams in the region," the company said in a statement.

The company has also limited Apple Pay and other services in Russia.

Meanwhile, as Russia's war in Ukraine plays out for the world on social media, big tech platforms are moving to restrict Russian state media from using their platforms to spread propaganda and misinformation.

After the European Union's president called for a ban on Russian state media, a wave of tech companies blocked the channels from their platforms.

Google announced Tuesday that it's blocking the YouTube channels of those outlets in Europe "effective immediately" but acknowledged "it'll take time for our systems to fully ramp up".

Russia's RT and Sputnik accounts were also disabled in Europe on China's TikTok, a video-sharing platform, a company spokesperson confirmed Tuesday. The actions followed Meta's announcement that it would bar the state media from its platforms, Instagram and Facebook.

Tech companies have also offered more modest changes in other parts of the world so far: limiting the Kremlin's reach, labelling more of this content so that people know it originated with the Russian government, and cutting Russian state organs off from whatever ad revenue they were previously making.

Last Thursday, Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine, responding to calls for help from the Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics in countering the aggression of Ukrainian forces. The Russian Defense Ministry said the operation is targeting Ukrainian military infrastructure only, stressing that the civilian population is not in danger.

(With inputs from Agencies)

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