Google removed its employees from Russia: they will work in an office in Dubai

Most Google employees based in Russia decided to leave the country when the company offered to take them out. Google will soon have no workforce in Russia due to its ongoing war with Ukraine. Many employees have moved to Dubai (UAE), where Google has a large office, writes Protocol.

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The Wall Street Journal reports that Russian authorities emptied Google's main Russian bank account after a court froze it in March. After that, the company decided to start taking its employees out of the country. Unnamed sources declined to say how much the government took, but it left Google with no money even to pay its Russian employees and suppliers. As a result, the Russian subsidiary of Google will be declared bankrupt.

Google said it will continue to offer free services in Russia, including Search, YouTube, Gmail and Maps. But the company has not resumed advertising operations in Russia since it suspended them in March. YouTube, owned by Google, also banned ads on channels owned by Russian state-owned media outlets and then completely blocked those channels. Russia banned Facebook and Instagram in March after calling Meta "extremist."

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"The seizure of Google's bank account by the Russian authorities has made it impossible for our Russian office to function, including hiring and paying Russian employees, and meeting other financial obligations," a Google spokesperson said. “People in Russia rely on our services to access quality information.”

In December 2021, the Russian Federation fined Google $98 million for failing to remove content that Russia considers illegal from its platforms. The fine amounted to about 8% of Google's revenue in Russia, writes The Verge.

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Google is currently the first major tech company to file for bankruptcy in Russia. Other companies such as Apple, Meta and Microsoft have suspended operations in the country, but their Russian subsidiaries have not filed for bankruptcy.

Russia-backed food delivery startup Buyk filed for bankruptcy in March due to economic sanctions imposed on the country. McDonald's recently announced that it was leaving Russia and selling its fast food restaurants after more than 30 years in the country.

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