Following the outbreak of hostilities in Ukraine and the introduction of sanctions, the world's largest manufacturers of telecommunications equipment, including Nokia, Ericsson, Huawei, Cisco and others, suspended deliveries to Russia. Later, the United States partially excluded telecommunications and Internet equipment from the sanctions list. But despite this, in April Nokia still announced that it was preparing to leave the Russian market. "In recent weeks, we have suspended deliveries, stopped new business and are moving our limited research and development activities outside of Russia," the company explained. A Nokia representative also said that the company intends to ensure the maintenance of its networks and wants to apply for the necessary licenses so as not to fall under sanctions.
In August, Reuters, citing a Nokia malaysia cell phone number list representative, wrote that the company planned to close most of its business in Russia. "By the end of the year, the vast majority of our employees in Russia will leave Nokia and we will vacate all of our offices. We will maintain an official presence in the country until the legal closure is complete," a Nokia representative said. According to Reuters, the company had about 2,000 employees in Russia.
Now one of RBC's interlocutors says that legally, local legal entities will be liquidated as the company's obligations to clients are completed. "It is assumed that this will take about a year after receiving export licenses," he said.
Two sources close to telecom operators reported that Nokia recommended its customers to contact the Russian Telesystems Service LLC (TSS) for technical support. "This company is currently preparing to enter into agreements for technical support of Nokia equipment installed by operators from January 1, 2023. Some of the employees of the Finnish company's Russian legal entities will work there," one of the sources explained. According to the second, there is currently an "organized process of smooth transition of technical support services for Nokia equipment to TSS and negotiations are underway with operators to conclude relevant agreements. This source explained that formally, the employees of Nokia's Russian legal entities are not moving to TSS, but are leaving their previous place of work and being hired for a new place.