The company that helped finance the Tea Party and funds an array of toxic, far-right candidates, causes, and "think tanks" holds true to form:
Koch Industries, the Wichita-based petroleum company run by right-wing billionaire Charles Koch, has kept its Russia-based operations going despite Corporate America's mass exodus from the country amid Russia's devastating invasion of Ukraine.
According to Popular Information, the conglomerate owns a number of Russia-based subsidiaries. Notable among them is Guardian Industries, an Auburn Hills, Michigan-based manufacturer of industrial glass and other products. The subsidiary reportedly runs two Russia-based facilities in Ryazan and Rostov. [snip]
Electronic components manufacturer Molex, another Koch Industries subsidiary, offers its products through a "network of third-party distributors across Russia," as Popular Information reported.
Two letters released by Molex in February and March indicate that the company has no intention to suspend operations in Russia. [snip]
Koch Industries also owns Koch Engineered Solutions, a subsidiary that "specialize[s] in process and pollution control equipment that help industrial facilities to operate responsibly." According to Popular Information, Koch Engineered Solutions runs a sales office out of Moscow. The company reportedly has a history of evading U.S. sanctions to support its bottom line. [snip]
Still, Koch Industries is not the only laggard. Companies like Halliburton, AbbVie, Bosch, Cargill, Subway, White & Case, Accor, and Amway have apparently refused to sever ties. Many of them have argued that breaking away from the country would be most punishing to Russian citizens, especially amid crippling U.S. sanctions. (our emphasis)
By the way, that list of "laggard" companies reads like a who's who of Republican Party mega-contributors. Surprise not surprised.
For a company whose founder believes that economic freedom is essential to society's well- being, it only goes to show that they won't let the wanton deaths of thousands of innocent people by a brutal dictator get in the way of making some economic freedom bucks.
(Photo: Spencer Platt/ Getty Images)
