Opinion: Impacts of war

March 4, 2022

In the David and Goliath war started by Mr Putin, the President of Russia and supported by his toadying collaborator, the President of Belarus, the human impacts on the ordinary people of Ukraine are unimaginable.

Stefanie Unland, Managing Editor of The Recycler

As the editor of a B2B trade publication with readers in both the Ukraine and Russia, I never imagined the world could unfold so violently and quickly at the whim of a despot. But it did, and this morning as I write this, we hear the news that Russian forces were bombing a nuclear power station. Our prayers are for sanity to take control and peace to return to Ukraine.

Sadly, I don’t think that words from me will change Mr Putin’s mind. But as the philosopher John Stuart Mill said in 1867:

“Let not any one pacify his conscience by the delusion that he can do no harm if he takes no part, and forms no opinion. Bad men need nothing more to compass their ends, than that good men should look on and do nothing. He is not a good man who, without a protest, allows wrong to be committed in his name, and with the means which he helps to supply, because he will not trouble himself to use his mind on the subject.”

The war has seen an outpouring of support for Ukraine and sanctions on Russia. For the office imaging industry, the impact is significant. Russia is a substantial market where the reuse of OEM and non-OEM consumables is the most significant part of the market. A market where reuse is the lion’s share and the OEM market share is much smaller.

The sanctions will impact toner, OPC, chip manufacturers and suppliers. Either because of direct sanctions or because Russian banks are now excluded from the SWIFT payment system, and customers cannot pay for goods. Or because the major trade credit insurers have withdrawn cover for Russia and Belarus.

Perversely, products in transit to Russia will be diverted, probably to Europe, which should help improve inconsistencies in the supply chain.

We will leave the war reporting to the mainstream media. From now on, our coverage will focus on the human and market impacts the war has on the office imaging market.

Again, our prayers are for sanity to take control and peace to return to Ukraine.