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Koch Industries plans to maintain its business operations in Russia, breaking with other companies that hastily exited the country following the Kremlin’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, the company confirmed this week.
GOP megadonor Charles Koch’s Kansas-based firm said it will continue operating two industrial glass factories in Russia owned by its subsidiary, Guardian Industries.
Koch Industries COO Dave Robertson defended the firm’s decision in a lengthy statement – arguing Russia would nationalize both facilities if it left.
“While Guardian’s business in Russia is a very small part of Koch, we will not walk away from our employees there or hand over these manufacturing facilities to the Russian government so it can operate and benefit from them,” Robertson said. “Doing so would only put our employees there at greater risk and do more harm than good.”
Koch has “no other physical assets” in Russia and has just 15 employees in the country outside from Guardian’s operations, according to the executive. Guardian employs roughly 600 people at the two glass factories.
Roberson said Koch was “complying with all applicable sanctions, laws and regulations governing our relationships and transactions within all countries where we operate.
“We will continue to closely monitor the situation and keep you updated as needed,” he added.
Major US corporations such as Apple and McDonald’s headline a growing list of firms who have limited operations in Russia or cut ties with the country entirely following the invasion.
Most companies have cited mounting sanctions against Russia that have made it difficult to continue doing business, or moral concerns related to Russia’s increasingly brutal incursion.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and other top Ukrainian officials have actively pressured Western companies to cut ties with Russia.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) slammed Koch for opting to stay active in the country. Charles Koch and his late brother, David, have long rankled Democrats by bankrolling right-leaning causes and politicians.
“As the democracies of the world make huge sacrifices to punish Russia for Putin’s illegal and vicious invasion of Ukraine, Koch Industries continues to profit off of Putin’s regime,” the lawmakers said in a statement.
“It is time for Koch Industries to put the values of democracy ahead of its own profits. We are calling on Koch Industries to immediately suspend their operations in Russia,” they added.
More than 400 companies around the world have left Russia since the invasion began, according to a list compiled by professor Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and researchers at Yale University. Koch Industries was one of 30 companies deemed to be “digging in” or defying calls to exit.
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