The Ford Motor Company is the latest global firm to express concern over the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker has announced it will suspend its small Russian operation due to the crisis. The suspension was announced via Twitter by Ford CEO Jim Farley.
“In recent years, Ford has significantly wound down its Russian operations, which now focus exclusively on commercial van manufacturing and Russian sales through a minority interest in the Sollers Ford joint venture,” tweeted Farley. “Given the situation, we have today informed our JV partners that we are suspending our operations in Russia, effective immediately, until further notice.”
We at @Ford are deeply concerned about the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and the safety of the Ukrainian people. Effective immediately, Ford is suspending our limited operations in Russia and taking action to support the Global Giving Ukraine Relief Fund. pic.twitter.com/CfasPz0E2v
— Jim Farley (@jimfarley98) March 1, 2022
Farley also announced that Ford will donate $100,000 toward humanitarian aid in Ukraine. While the automaker does not have facilities in Ukraine, employees of Ukrainian descent work at Ford facilities worldwide, and the company has promised them full support.
Ford teamed up with the Russian-based Sollers in 2011, for the purpose of building and selling Ford products in Russia. Sollers is a holding company that has controlling shares of the Russian automaker UAZ, engine manufacturer ZMZ, and the Sollers – Naberezhnye Chelny plant.
Under the group Ford Europe, a plant operated near St. Petersburg, Russia from 2002 to 2019, producing the just-discontinued Ford Mondeo midsize sedan, and a European version of the Focus compact car.
The news of Ford’s suspension of Russian operations comes a day after rival General Motors announced it would suspend vehicle exports to Russia.
