Finnish telecommunications equipment maker Nokia has confirmed its withdrawal from the Russian market, a step more drastic than other western powers that are simply restricting business in the country.
Nokia Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Pekka Lundmark in an interview confirmed the company's withdrawal by stating that they have no further reason to continue doing business in the country due to the current situation and did not specify how long they will continue to do so.
He added, however, that Nokia will continue to provide support to existing customers and is applying for a license for permission to assist customers despite complying with the restrictions imposed.
To date, Nokia has 90,000 employees worldwide and the layoffs will affect nearly 2,000 employees in Russia.
In addition, Nokia also confirmed that the company's withdrawal did not have any impact on the outlook for 2022 but there will be a slight decrease in the first quarter report of 100 million Euros or US $ 109 million.
Earlier, Nokia's close competitor, Ericsson from Sweden had expressed a desire to suspend business permanently in Russia.
Even so, the withdrawal by neither Nokia nor Ericsson is seen as not threatening the Russian market as both only account for a small percentage compared to other Chinese giant brands such as Huawei and ZTE.
Generally, hundreds of foreign companies have acted to either block business or shipments to Russia following the Moscow government's attack on Ukraine on February 24.
To make matters worse, Russia has long been at loggerheads with NATO allies, including Finland and Sweden, forcing companies to build networks using only Russian equipment.
