Counterstatement of Leica Camera AG of the Article „The Insider“ from May 18, 2023
Leica Camera AG firmly rejects the allegations mentioned in the article of "THE INSIDER" of 18 May 2023 regarding support for the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. The statement that Leica Camera AG has continued to supply products for civil use to Russia despite the official announcement of an export stop is false. The last delivery of the products mentioned in the article to the Russian subsidiary took place at the end of February 2022 and thus indicates that shortly after the outbreak of the Russian war of aggression Leica Camera AG promptly implemented all relevant measures to obey the voluntary export ban. This also includes the closure of the Leica Store in Moscow and the decided implementation of the liquidation of the company Leica Russia at the end of 2022. Leica Camera AG has thus fully withdrawn from the Russian market, support of the Russian war of aggression is therefore purely factually impossible. Leica Camera AG has also at no time, as also mentioned in the article, circumvented any sanctions provisions.
Moreover, the products mentioned in the article are purely for civilian use in the field of application for hunters and sport shooters. In accordance with an updated resolution of the Board of Management in August 2022 all companies of Leica Camera AG are prohibited from bringing devices and applications for military use onto the market.
The projects for economic cooperation with Russian companies mentioned in the report took place in a phase before the Ukraine war and have been completed for some time. The nature of the cooperation has been purely related to the use of civilian applications in the field of photography.
The activities of Leica Geosystems AG mentioned in the article are in no way related to Leica Camera AG, as they are two legally separate and economically independent companies.
Leica Camera AG reserves the right to take possible legal action due to the dissemination of false statements.
Finally, it should be noted that the online platform "The Insider" does not provide any information about the specific author of the article, respectively there is no imprint.
Leica Camera – A Partner for Photography
Leica Camera AG is an international, premium manufacturer of cameras and sports optics. The legendary reputation of the Leica brand is based on a long tradition of excellent quality, German craftsmanship and German industrial design, combined with innovative technologies. An integral part of the brand's culture is the diversity of activities the company undertakes for the advancement of photography. In addition to the Leica Galleries and Leica Akademies spread around the world, there are the Leica Hall of Fame Award and, in particular, the Leica Oskar Barnack Award (LOBA), which is considered one of the most innovative sponsorship awards existing today. Furthermore, Leica Camera AG, with its headquarters in Wetzlar, Hesse, and a second production site in Vila Nova de Famalicão, Portugal, has a worldwide network of its own national organisations and Leica Retail Stores.