IBM and Microsoft are laying off hundreds of employees in Russia as companies continue to exit and scale down businesses in the country

Tech giants IBM and Microsoft are laying off hundreds of employees in Russia.

IBM suspended its Russian operations in March after the country invaded Ukraine, but employees were kept on the payroll. He stated that the local workforce would be laid off.

Krishna said that their colleagues in Russia have been through a lot. "We recognize that this news is difficult and I want to assure them that IBM will continue to stand by them and take all reasonable steps to provide support and make their transition as orderly as possible."

IBM did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment, but said it has hundreds of employees in Russia.

Krishna said during IBM's first-quarter earnings call in April that the company's business in Russia is small and focused on high-end infrastructure and software.

Microsoft has stopped new sales and services in Russia.

"As a result of the changes to the economic outlook and the impact on our business in Russia, we have made the decision to significantly scale down our operations in Russia," the Microsoft spokesman said. We will fulfill our contractual obligations with Russian customers while new sales are suspended.

400 Microsoft employees are going to be laid off in Russia, according to a spokeswoman for the company.

The tech giant told Insider that they are working closely with impacted employees to make sure they are treated with respect.

Microsoft and IBM are two of the major US and European companies that have decided to end their operations in Russia.