TOKYO (Reuters). Uniqlo is now the owner of Fast Retailing Co. Japan Tobacco (OTC) Inc said Thursday they would cease operations in Russia. It was a sudden decision by Japanese consumers giants, who had previously stated they intended to remain on the Russian market following the invasion of Ukraine.

These two firms were notable stands outs in major brands and stated that they will continue to do business with Russia despite the imposition of huge trade sanctions.

Fast Retailing founder Tadashi Yanai had previously told Japanese media the company will continue to operate its 50 Russian stores because clothing is “a necessity of living”.

Fast Retailing announced that on Thursday, they had stopped selling Uniqlo in Russia. “We are unable to continue our Uniqlo operations due to numerous difficulties.”

“We condemn every form of aggression that violates human rights and threatens peaceful existence of individuals.”

Japan Tobacco controls around one-third Russia’s tobacco market via brands like Winston and Camel. It announced that its Japanese subsidiary would cease investment and marketing activities in order to launch a heat tobacco product.

The company stated in a statement that “the challenges of operating Russia at the moment are unparalleled.”

There are a lot of consumer brands around the world, including Nike Inc (NYSE:), Levi Strauss & Co (NYSE:) And IKEA AB, a home furnishings company, announced in the recent days that they would stop selling and investing in Russia.

Fast Retailing was another major clothing company that suffered a backlash due to their China operations last year. This followed criticisms from Xinjiang provincial about alleged human rights violations.

Fast Retailing maintained its sustainable sourcing of China, and Yanai, founder of Fast Retailing told the newspaper that the company won’t make a choice between China or the U.S.

China has 800 of the company’s stores, which is about the same number as Japan. Oshadhi Kulasiri from LightStream Research said that staying in Russia could lead to boycotts by larger consumers.

Kumarasiri told Reuters that such an approach could be expected when dealing with China. He is a contributor to SmartKarma and said this before the Russia pullout announcement. But, Russia does not have the same importance as other major markets.

According to Fast Retailing, online sales will be stopped in Russia. The company had previously stated that it will donate $10 million to refugees in crisis and provide 200,000 clothes.