The Russo-Ukrainian war may be thousands of kilometres away from the sunny locales of South Africa but as a result of global trade, we face cascading effects from the conflict. Ferrari and Lamborghini have become the latest automakers to take action against the unpopular war.
These actions add to the growing list of automakers imposing sanctions against Russia and providing financial aid to stricken Ukrainian citizens with both Italian automakers being some of the most recent to condone the unnecessary Russian belligerent. Lamborghini has halted their business operations in Russia while Ferrari has suspended vehicle production intended for the country while also donating €1M To Ukraine.
Ferrari joins brands like Porsche, VW Group, Nissan and Stellantis in providing €1M of financial aid to the invaded country while Lamborghini also mentioned that they were preparing an unspecified donation to UN Refugee Aid over Twitter.
Ferrari CEO Benedetto Vigna said that the automaker stands alongside affected Ukrainians, adding: “While we hope for a rapid return to dialogue and a peaceful solution, we cannot remain indifferent to the suffering of everyone affected. Our thoughts and support go out to them.” The financial support from the Prancing Horse will be directed towards international humanitarian projects and invest in local initiatives to receive refugees in the Italian region
While Ferrari and Lamborghini become the latest to provide financial aid, most automakers have completely cut ties with Russian operations and ceased factory production within the large country.
Toyota, Honda, General Motors and Mazda have halted exports while Ford, Volvo and Jaguar Land Rover have suspended all company operations. Toyota has also closed its St. Petersburg factory that builds Camry and RAV4 models for the Russian market. These wide scale sanctions provide job security for thousands of Russian citizens and are intended to send a stark message to the autocratic rule of Putin.