Adapting to new trade flows in a time of war

Swift decisions on employee security, sanctions, and operations were required as the outbreak of war in Ukraine disrupted lives and the flow of goods.

Overnight Yurii Rozhkov life as a truck driver changed dramatically when his native country Ukraine was invaded. Since the outbreak of war, business and trade flows in countries around Russia have adapted to the new circumstances.

For DFDS, the very first priority was to bring 12 employees in Ukraine and their families to safety. As logistics offices were closed in Kyiv and Lviv, individual support plans were made for all affected employees and their families, including upkeep of their employment. The uncertainty felt by employees in neighbouring countries was addressed through both corporate and local communications. In addition, job guarantees were provided for Ukrainian nationals drafted to perform military service whether working for DFDS in Ukraine or abroad.

Logistics operations in Ukraine and Russia were immediately disrupted and contingency plans were developed for how to respond to the new circumstances. Already from the beginning of March 2022, ahead of EU sanctions that came into effect on 16 April 2022, DFDS stopped carrying vehicles registered in Russia. Logistics operations in Russia were likewise stopped even though employment was upheld for around 40 employees in Russia until the activities were sold in June 2022.

Follow Yurii in a video as he loads a generator in Taulov, Denmark, bound for Kharkiv, Ukraine, and reflects on the impact of the war.

Since the outbreak of war, business and trade flows in countries around Russia have adapted to the new circumstances. In a matter of months, our Ukrainian logistics activities were refocused from transporting goods between Ukraine and the EU to transporting aid for international relief organisations to Ukraine such as food, medicine, medicinal equipment, and clothes. The aid is distributed to locations in many parts of Ukraine in cooperation with the Ukrainian Ministry of Health.

Flows to the CIS countries in Central Asia, previously transported through Russia, have been rerouted, for example through Turkey, which means that volumes to Turkey from Europe have been increasing through 2022.