One of the largest tech corporations in the world is being sued by Russia for an unimaginable amount of money.
According to reports, Google owes the Kremlin more than 2 undecillion rubles, which is a 2 followed by 36 zeroes, because it has refused to pay fines that are currently being accumulated for removing YouTube channels that support Russia. The International Monetary Fund estimates that the global gross domestic product is only $110 trillion. Alphabet, the parent company of Google, is valued at almost $2 trillion.
A Russian court had already ordered Google to restore the YouTube channels, some of which have been prohibited since 2022, or face growing charges, with penalties rising every week, according to a report this week from Russian state media TASS.
In an interview with reporters on Thursday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov acknowledged that he “can’t even pronounce this figure right” when asked about the case, but he claimed that the staggering amount was “full of symbolism.”He continued by saying that Google “should not be restricting the actions of our broadcasters on its platform.” The International Monetary Fund estimates that the global gross domestic product is only $110 trillion. Alphabet, the parent company of Google, is valued at almost $2 trillion.
The corporation mentioned “ongoing legal matters” pertaining to its operations in Russia in its quarterly profits that were released this week.
Google stated, “We have been subject to civil judgments that include compounding penalties in connection with disputes regarding the termination of accounts, including those of sanctioned parties.” “We don’t think that these ongoing legal issues will materially hurt earnings.”
Unlike several other American internet businesses, Google reduced its operations in Ukraine after Russia’s full-scale invasion, but it did not completely withdraw. Several of its offerings, such as YouTube and Search, are still accessible in the nation.
After the government took control of its financial accounts, Google’s Russia unit declared bankruptcy and suspended the majority of its business activities months after the invasion.
