IKEA shoppers in Russia have been panic buying after the Swedish home furnishing firm announced it would temporarily close its stores in the country.
Dozens of companies are halting business in the country in the wake of Vladimir Putin’s decision to launch a devastating invasion of Ukraine.
Huge queues formed in IKEA stores across Russia, from St Petersburg to Siberia.
Footage shows crowds of people stocking up on homeware and flatpack furniture.
For the latest updates on the Russia-Ukraine war, visit our live blog: Russia-Ukraine live
Shelves were stripped bare in places as people crammed their carts.
‘We didn’t get what we planned because nothing’s left,’ one shopper said.
IKEA is closing all its branches in Russia, and will stop sourcing materials from Belarus. The firm’s parent company will keep its Mega shopping centres open.
In a statement, IKEA said: ‘The war has both a huge human impact and is resulting in serious disruptions to supply chain and trading conditions, which is why the company groups have decided to temporarily pause IKEA operations in Russia’.
IKEA is the world’s largest furniture brand, and Russia was its 10th-biggest market.
Around 15,000 workers and millions of customers have been affected by the closure of its 17 Russian stores.
The company said it had ‘secured employment and income stability’ for its staff ‘for the immediate future’.
The UK, EU, US and more than a dozen other countries have slapped Russia with a raft of economic sanctions, and more are set to be announced.
Other businesses suspending operations in Russia due to sanctions include Apple, Mercedes-Benz, BP, Volkswagen, H&M.
Earlier today, President Putin appeared to brush aside the impact of Western sanctions.
But he urged countries to think about how to ‘normalise relations’ with Russia.
‘There are no bad intentions towards our neighbours. And I would also advise them not to escalate the situation, not to introduce any restrictions,’ he said in a televised statement.
‘We do not see any need here to aggravate or worsen our relations.’
It comes after a nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, was attacked by Russian shelling.
Nine days into the invasion, more than 2,000 civilians have been killed, Ukraine’s state emergency service said.
Russian airstrikes have hit apartments, schools, and hospitals, and the International Criminal Court has launched a war crimes investigation.
Amnesty said Russia’s military had violated international humanitarian law and ‘shown a blatant disregard for civilian lives’.
Russia routinely denies it carries out illegal attacks.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
from News – Metro https://ift.tt/wfleMhT
0 Comments