Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, American credit card firms Mastercard and Visa stated that their services in the country will be banned late Saturday.
Russian bank-issued Mastercard cards will no longer work, and Mastercard cards from other countries will not work at Russian ATMs. All transactions involving Visa cards issued in Russia made outside of the country have been blocked, and Visa cards issued by banks outside of Russia will no longer operate within the country.
“We don’t take this decision lightly,” Mastercard said in a statement, stressing that the business has operated in Russia for 25 years and employs over 200 people there. “When it is permissible and appropriate under the law,” it declared, “we will harness their enthusiasm and ingenuity to seek to restore operations.”
“We must respond in accordance with our convictions in light of this conflict and the persistent threat to peace and stability,” said Al Kelly, chairman and CEO of Visa Inc.
On Sunday, foreign media outlets claimed that Russian soldiers attacked Ukraine’s Starokostiantyniv military airfield.
The strike was carried out with long-range high-precision, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense.
“Russian armed forces continue to assault Ukraine’s military facilities,” said Igor Konashenkov, a spokesperson for the Russian Defense Ministry.
“On the morning of March 6, high-precision long-range weaponry were used to carry out strikes. He went on to say that the Ukrainian air force base at Starokostiantyniv had been shut down.
Finally, Konashenkov determined that Russian attacks also damaged the Ukrainian S-300 missile system, as well as 10 Ukrainian planes and helicopters in less than 24 hours.
“It is worth noting that 17 civilians were murdered and 13 others were injured in Ukraine’s Chernihiv area as a result of Russian bombings,” the Ukrainian emergency services stated in an online statement.
“Since the commencement of the Russian military action, around 1.3 million people have fled Ukraine,” the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) announced on Saturday.