Topline
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on Microsoft, Oracle and SAP—who have all announced significant steps to roll back business operations in Russia—to take further action against Russia Sunday, but Oracle said it’s already done everything possible in Russia despite Zelensky’s plea.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy holds a press conference in Kyiv on Saturday.
Key Facts
Tagging Microsoft, Oracle and SAP’s official accounts, Zelensky tweeted Sunday the technology companies must “stop supporting” their Russian products, asserting the company’s Russian pullbacks were “‘half’ decisions.’”
Earlier this month, Microsoft announced the suspension of new sales in Russia, Oracle said it “suspended all operations” in the country and SAP said it was “stopping business in Russia aligned with sanctions” and pausing all sales, joining dozens of international companies in severing business ties with Russia.
Zelensky, who hadn’t named individual companies for their measures before Sunday’s tweet—which quickly went viral, with 15,000 retweets in under three hours—appears to be calling on the tech companies to suspend Russian access to their software and services.
Oracle responded to Zelensky’s tweet Sunday afternoon, saying it had already “ended all operations” in Russia, listing the measures it has taken, including cutting off access to customer support and access to software updates.
Microsoft and SAP did not immediately respond to Forbes’ request for comment and have yet to publicly address the matter.
Crucial Quote
Zelensky said, “Now can be no ‘half’ decisions or ‘halftones’! There is only black and white, good or evil! You are either for peace or support the bloody Russian aggressor to kill Ukrainian children and women. @Microsoft @Oracle @SAP, stop supporting your products in Russia, stop the war!”
Key Background
Though Zelensky has avoided publicly calling out individual companies, Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Federov has actively lobbied American companies to support Ukraine and cut Russian business ties. Federov called on SAP to go further in severing Russian ties last week in a tweet after SAP announced its move, saying the suspension of sales were “not enough,” calling on the company to “stop support” of its products in Russia as it continues its invasion. In another tweet, Federov asked Microsoft to block Russian access to its Azure, GitHub and Skype services.
Tangent
Zelensky praised Meta in another Sunday tweet, thanking the Facebook and Instagram parent company that restricted access to Russian state media for helping Ukraine in the “fierce battle in the informational space.”
Further Reading
Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan, YouTube—Here Are The Companies Cutting Ties With Russia Over Ukraine Invasion (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2022/03/13/zelensky-presses-companies-microsoft-sap-and-oracle-to-punish-russia-more/