Russia has been in the blacklist of a number of countries after its unprovoked invasion in Ukraine in March, 2022. Many major businesses including McDonalds and Apple have departed the country or have at least reduced their operations as a protest towards the actions taken by Russia and the result of the sanctions. Even some of the major Hollywood studios have walked out of the country due to the invasion.
Many of the cinema owners in the country have said that almost all the cinema theatres in the country might shut down by the end of 2022. Some of the major Hollywood studios have ceased their licenses in the country. The blockbusters of Hollywood had accounted for nearly 80 percent of the earnings of Russian cinema. But then the theatre owners had started to show old foreign or Soviet films to save the business but in vain. The cinema business in the country was already struggling due to COVID-19 pandemic and now there are speculations that Hollywood films might be replaced by Bollywood in Russia.
As of now it has become tough to imagine life in the country without McDonald’s, iPhones or IKEA furniture. A major bulk of the non-food commodities came from foreign companies and also supported about 2 million jobs. Due to the sanctions, nearly 1000 international companies have restricted or have sold off at least some of their operations between March and May, 2022. Due to the situation, as many as 600,000 people have lost their jobs.
On the other hand Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that he is happy that some of the foreign companies have left the country as it will allow the home grown businesses to flourish. The country had also warned the west that it would take away the ownership of the local enterprises owned by western companies, who would chose to leave. The new rule might come to effect in the upcoming weeks and would make it difficult for the western firms as Russia would have broader powers.
Photo Credits: Pixabay
