Chinese transnational corporations in the Ukraine crisis: risk perception and mitigation

Abstract

Abstract As the most consequential geopolitical event in the post-Cold War era, the Ukraine Crisis has given rise to intensive debates over the impacts of geopolitics on the operation of transnational corporations. While lots of attention has been paid to the impacts of the crisis on global economies and business operations, there is still limited understanding of how Chinese transnational corporations (CTCs) perceive and respond to the geopolitical risks associated with the Ukraine crisis. This article contributes to the literature by studying the risk perceptions and mitigations of CTCs towards the Ukraine crisis. It argues that CTCs’ risk perceptions have centred on three aspects, including the Russia-Ukraine war itself, the sanctions imposed by western countries and the possible deterioration of China-EU-US relations. Based on these risk perceptions, CTCs have turned to diversified strategies to mitigate the geopolitical risks linked with the Ukraine crisis, with low-profile compliance being the dominant strategy among CTCs.