Apple halts sales and removes two of the most popular applications from its App Store.
Despite Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Apple has ceased all product sales in Russia, making a statement.
In the words of a recent study, According to Bloomberg, Apple has already halted sales before ceasing exports last week. There will be no top iPhones, MacBooks, Apple Watch devices, or any other Apple items available in Russia.
Sputnik’s app has been removed from the App Stores in the United States and Canada. The traffic and live-incident functions of Apple Maps have also been blocked in Ukraine, apparently due to Apple’s decision to do so. Additionally, during the previous several days, Apple has “restricted its Apple Pay service and other online products” in Russia.
Apple has issued a statement saying that it stands “with all of the individuals who are impacted by the violence.”
In a statement, Apple stated, “We are profoundly worried about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.” Doing everything we can to help our teams in the area, we’re giving humanitarian assistance and aiding the rising refugee catastrophe.
Ukraine’s vice-prime minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, issued a statement yesterday urging Apple to cease selling its goods in Russia. Also, Apple’s Russian App Store was supposed to be shut down by him, but it doesn’t seem to be happening at the moment.
On behalf of Ukraine and the rest of the Western democratic world against bloody authoritarian aggression, I beg and hope that you will not only hear, but also do all that you can to stop supplying Apple services and products to Russia, including blocking access to the App Store,” wrote Fedorov in a letter.
For the time being, Apple has said that it is appealing for peace and that it will keep an eye on things.
In response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, other IT businesses have also reacted. According to a recent announcement made by Netflix, the company would no longer broadcast state-run Russian television networks on its streaming platform, and a number of companies have withdrawn their films from Russia, including Warner Brothers. As a result of these moves, Twitter, YouTube, and Meta have either blacklisted or de-monitored Russian official media feeds.
If you’d like to make a donation to a charity that will benefit Ukraine, check out this list of options. Source