DHL and Kuehne+Nagel suspend services to Russia, further weakening Russia's ability to send and receive goods

• Kuehne + Nagel and DHL joined FedEx and UPS in suspending freight imports to Russia.
• DHL has also closed its offices and operations in Ukraine, citing safety concerns.

Freight giants Kuehne+Nagel (K+N) and DHL have suspended services to Russia with immediate effect.

The Russian army continues to attack Ukraine following its invasion on Thursday. Fighting has reached major cities leading to concerns that civilian casualties will increase.

In a statement on Tuesday evening, K+N announced it was suspending all import shipments to the Russian Federation "with immediate effect," except for "pharma, healthcare and humanitarian supplies".

On Wednesday, DHL announced a similar measure but is also including Russia's ally Belarus in the suspension. The company said it's also closed its offices and operations in Ukraine, citing employee safety.

The two joined other major US freight firms FedEx and UPS who restricted services to the Russian Federation on February 27, per Reuters.

The move places further pressure on Russia's ability to send and receive goods after giants Maersk and ONE suspended container shipments to the nation. The UK government has closed its ports to Russian owned ships.

Foreign governments have also closed their skies to Russian aircraft, alongside a swathe of economic sanctions in response to President Vladimir Putin's invasion.

Businesses including — Apple and Disney — are matching the economic sanctions by foreign governments, by restricting services into the nation.

There are warnings that the disruptions could have a wider impact on supply chains around the world. Nike temporarily suspended deliveries into Russia because there is no one left to take them.

In its statement, K+N acknowledged that the sanctions, coupled with the closure of air corridors above Russia and Ukraine could cause capacity restrictions and longer lead times.

"Further impacts on the sea freight market cannot be excluded," the statement said.