Google is planning to close down its engineering office in Russia after the country passed restrictive regulations on the storage of data by international technology companies, in addition to restrictions on Internet freedom.
The move to shut down the company's engineering operations in Russia will affect about 50 engineers, according to The Information.
The publication, which cited anonymous sources for its report, also states that the engineers of Google, who will be affected by the company's decision to pull out, will be given the option to continue their employment with Google in other locations. Most of the Google engineers in Russia reside in Moscow.
However, the Wall Street Journal reported that Google would be retaining certain employees in Russia to work within the functions of business partnerships, sales, marketing and communications, and user support.
"We are deeply committed to our Russian users and customers and we have a dedicated team in Russia working to support them," said a spokesman for Google. The company has had a presence in Russia for almost a decade, launching its engineering operations in the country back in 2006.
However, Russia has just recently become hostile against international technology companies.
Russia has passed new regulations that require such companies to store all data that concerns citizens of Russia within the country, instead of storing the information in data centers that are located in other countries.
The move, according to the Kremlin, is for the protection of information involving its citizens. However, most critics believe that the new laws may be seen as an attack on several social networks.
The law on data storage was passed following new rules that required blogs that are able to attract over 3,000 daily visits to be registered under a communications watchdog of Russia, in addition to regulations that allow the country to shut down websites without the need of a court order.
In addition to the new regulations, due to the conflict with Ukraine, Russia has received several Western sanctions that impede the business development of international companies in the country.
If Google pushes through with its planned withdrawal from Russia, it would not be the first one to do so. Adobe Systems, another international technology company, closed down its operations and offices in Russia in September.
With such restrictions in place, it might not be long before other international technology companies operating in Russia follow suit and transfer bases of their operations elsewhere.
