Shipping giants UPS, Fedex halt shipments to Russia and Ukraine

Treasury Department bars transactions with Russia’s Central Bank.

UPS and Fedex have halted shipments to Russia and Ukraine after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Sandy Springs-based UPS said it has suspended all shipping to, from and within Ukraine, and all international shipments to destinations in Russia, until further notice.

The shipping giant said it will return packages to senders free of charge if they cannot be delivered to those countries. However, its money-back guarantee does not apply.

“Our focus is on the safety of our people, providing continued service and minimizing disruption to our customers,”

UPS said in a service alert on its website. “UPS continues to closely monitor the situation and will re-establish service as soon as it is practical and safe to do so.”

Competitor Fedex said its contingency plans include temporarily suspending inbound and outbound shipments to Ukraine and shipments to Russia until further notice. Memphis-based Fedex is also suspending its money-back guarantee for all Fedex Express service in Europe.

Separately, the U.S. Department of Treasury on Monday said it is prohibiting transactions by Americans with the Central Bank of Russia to immobilize its assets held in the United States or by any American, as sanctions on “key sources of Russia’s wealth.”

As directed by President Joe Biden last week, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control is also sanctioning the Russian Direct Investment Fund, which it said Russian President Vladimir Putin has relied on to raise funds abroad.

“The unprecedented action we are taking today will significantly limit Russia’s ability to use assets to finance its destabilizing activities, and target the funds Putin and his inner circle depend on to enable his invasion of Ukraine,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a written statement.