Anticipated Russian Invasion Creates Crisis For U.S. Companies In Ukraine

The anticipated invasion of Ukraine by Russia has created a crisis for U.S. companies with offices or employees in that country. Protecting their staff and assets—or moving them out of Ukraine as soon as possible—has become a top priority for corporate executives.

Some businesses were more prepared than others to deal with the unfolding situation.

‘Leave Now’

President Joe Biden warned on Thursday that all Americans in Ukraine “should leave now.”

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan underscored the point yesterday. Politico reported that, “Speaking from the White House podium, Sullivan urged Americans still in Ukraine to depart the country within the next two days, saying Biden would not send troops into harm’s way to evacuate U.S. citizens who could have left the Eastern European country when they had the chance.”

‘No Guarantees’

“We want to be crystal clear on this point: Any American in Ukraine should leave as soon as possible and, in any event, in the next 24 to 48 hours,” Sullivan said, adding: “If you stay, you are assuming risk with no guarantee that there will be any other opportunity to leave and no prospect of a U.S. military evacuation in the event of a Russian invasion.”

‘Hoping For The Best’

Svitla Systems Inc. is a multinational custom software developer and testing company that is headquartered in Marin County, California. Nataliya Anon, president, CEO and founder said she is very concerned about the safety of her 500 employees in five Ukrainian cities including the capital, Kyiv.

The North Bay Business Journal reported that company officials are “hoping for the best but preparing for the worst.”

“We listen to news reports about the pending aggression and ultimatum from Russia, and know we have to be on alert and prepared should diplomacy fail,” Anon said.

“We considered chartering an Airbus (aircraft) that could fly our staff out of the country, but a majority of our people have determined to stay, and there have been minimal relocations,” Anon said. “An emergency hotline was set up so employees could express their concerns and get more information. Only eight have called in. Ukrainians are tough and resilient people. Our employees are critical for us.”

Strategic Plan

Anon told the newspaper she believes her firm has been successful by getting ahead of this pending crisis. Six years ago the company created a strategic plan that looks at all contingencies, including preserving Svitla’s sensitive administrative and human resource files, proprietary employee and client information, along with critical payroll and financial records stored in the cloud.

“We anticipated such contingencies and placed orders for additional computers and related equipment in advance,” she said. “We expanded telecom links over hardlines and acquired cell phones for accessing the internet and cloud storage. In addition, we also installed more emergency battery backup facilities that can satisfy our electrical needs in the event of power failures.”

Advising Clients

Organizations that do not have the expertise or resources to protect or move their employees and assets in Ukraine to safety are turning consultants for their advice and services.

International security firm Global Guardian is preparing evacuation plans, briefing families and employees of corporations doing business in Ukraine and securing assets to evacuate their clients if necessary.

According to their website, Global Guardian's 24-hour operations center identifies, monitors, and responds to threats and emergencies with on-the-ground teams in over 125 countries. A full-fledged operations center, not a traditional call center, is run by their operations team which consists of professionals with backgrounds in federal intelligence.

The Virginia-based company is working with consulting firms, finance companies, techno lift and construction companies. In Ukraine they currently are covering 400 expats and 3,000 local nationals.

CEO Dale Buckner noted that, “The Biden administration’s announcement... that U.S. personnel in Ukraine should evacuate immediately doesn’t mean the latest intelligence suggests an invasion is imminent, it simply means the Russians have amassed all of the supporting equipment and materials to attack if they decide to strike.

He said that, “At Global Guardian, we are advising all of our Western clients with expats to take advantage of commercial air and rail travel while those options, albeit limited, are still available and operating.

Buckner told Security Info Watch that, “most large Western-based businesses with expatriates working in Ukraine have already either started to the leave the country or are planning to do so soon.

Evacuations To Safe Zones

“However, he says that expats who are married to Ukrainian nationals and may have children in the country or have been designated as essential workers to keep those businesses running, may not have yet evacuated, though their organizations are likely making plans to evacuate them to a ‘safe zone,’ possibly in the western part of the country or in neighboring Romania or Poland.”

“In talking with teams on the ground, the trains have been packed going on two weeks now and the airports are very consistent with commercial [flights] remaining busy and brisk,” Buckner said. “People are moving, and it has started in a material way.”

‘Have A Communications Plan’

In a statement, Buckner said that, “In addition to helping clients prepare for evacuation, we are also advising companies that have employees deemed essential in Ukraine and cannot leave to have a communications plan and assets in place, like satellite phones, in the event of a wide scale cyberattack.

“They also need to reserve vehicles now because those assets will be gone within the first 24-48 hours of an invasion. Moving quickly is essential in the event borders of neighboring countries become overwhelmed.”

Not The First Time

This is not the first time Global Guardian has provided their expertise in a crisis.

As U.S. troops began to withdraw from Afghanistan last year, the company contacted their clients in that country to offer evacuation assistance. According to the Fairfax County Virginia Economic Development Authority, “On August 5, 10 days before the Afghan government collapsed, the company began evacuating its clients from Kabul and two other cities. By August 18, Global Guardian had successfully evacuated all but one individual, whom it later got out of the country.”