Update, March 2, 2022: Honda, Toyota, Mazda, the VW Group and Ford have joined an exodus of automakers suspending their operations and exports to Russia after President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine.
“As a company with operations in Ukraine and Russia, our priority in dealing with this crisis is to ensure the safety of all our team members, retailer staff, and supply chain partners,” Toyota said. “We are also monitoring global developments and will make necessary decisions as required.”
Honda Motor said it will stop exporting cars, motorcycles, and other products to Russia, while Mazda has halted shipments of auto parts to its Sollers manufacturing in Vladivostok, the Nikkei newspaper reported.
Ford’s CEO Jim Farley shared the following posting on Twitter.
“We at Ford are deeply concerned about the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and the safety of the Ukrainian people,” wrote Farley. “Effective immediately, Ford is suspending our limited operations in Russia and taking action to support the Global Giving Ukraine Relief Fund.”
A VW Group representative sent the following statement to Carscoops:
“Volkswagen Group Rus has temporarily suspended deliveries of vehicles to dealers of its brands until further notice. Deliveries shall be resumed once the implications of the sanctions imposed by the European Union and United States have been clarified.”
On Tuesday, Jaguar-Land Rover said that it too would halt the delivery of vehicles in Russia.
“Jaguar Land Rover’s first priority is the well-being of our entire workforce and their families, as well as those within our extended network,” a JLR spokesperson told Carscoops in an email. “The current global context also presents us with trading challenges so we are pausing the delivery of vehicles into the Russian market and continually monitoring the situation on behalf of our global customer base.”
The BMW Group issued a statement saying that it will stop exporting new cars to Russia and cease assembly of vehicles at its local partner Avtotor’s Russian factory in Kaliningrad where it has produced over 261,000 cars since 1999.
“The BMW Group condemns the aggression against Ukraine and follows the developments with great concern and dismay,” reads the (translated) statement obtained by Bimmertoday. “As a global company, the BMW Group stands for peaceful coexistence of different cultures all over the world – every day and at all locations. The thoughts of the employees of the BMW Group are with everyone who has to experience suffering and loss in this war.”
“The situation in the war region remains confusing,” BMW added. “We expressly support the sanctions decided by politicians. Due to the current geopolitical situation, we will stop our local production and export for the Russian market until further notice. We continuously evaluate the situation and possible consequences for our employees and our company and examine further measures.”
GM Halts All Exports To Russia
General Motors was one of the first companies to announced that it would suspend vehicle exports to Russia following the invasion of Ukraine. The move follows the application of U.S. sanctions on the country. “Our thoughts are with the people of Ukraine at this time,” a GM spokesperson told Carscoops in a statement. “The loss of life is a tragedy and our overriding concern is for the safety of people in the region.”
The automaker joins Volvo and others in suspending exports to the nation. General Motors no longer operates any manufacturing facilities in Russia after selling its stake in Avtovaz, which is now owned by Renault. It does, however, operate a national sales company for Russia and CIS markets with vehicles sourced from North America and South Korea.
Read Also: Volvo Cars And Trucks Suspend Sales In Russia Following Invasion Of Ukraine
The U.S. government today announced that it is imposing stricter sanctions on Russia’s central bank and other sources of wealth. The sanctions are just the latest in a series of escalating actions taken against Russia after it initiated military action last week.
“Our objective is to make sure that the Russian economy goes backwards if President Putin decides to continue to go forward with an invasion in Ukraine, and we have the tools to continue to do that,” a senior U.S. administration official said on Monday, per Reuters.
General Motors, meanwhile, maintains that it has limited supply chain exposure and is working to mitigate any potential risks to its business and its people. Volkswagen said today that it is suspending delivery of vehicles to dealerships for the time being.
“Deliveries are to resume as soon as the effects of the sanctions imposed by the European Union and the United States have been clarified,” a VW spokesperson told Reuters.
VW and Renault, have been forced to announce production pauses this week. As companies monitor developments in the country.
Last week, Nexta.tv tweeted that GM was among a series of automakers that would be suspending shipments to Russia. So far GM, BMW, JLR, Volkswagen, and Daimler trucks are among the brands that have officially confirmed that they will be pausing deliveries to the market.
