It joins a similar US firm Cogent which said it was also cutting internet service to Russian clients.

To be fair, it is unlikely that Tsar Putin will be too concerned as Lumen said it provides "extremely small and very limited" business services in Russia. Lumen and Cogent are both part of the network that allows data to flow through the internet and their withdrawal could make things a bit messy in Russia.

"We decided to disconnect the network due to increased security risk inside Russia. We have not yet experienced network disruptions but given the increasingly uncertain environment and the heightened risk of state action, we took this move to ensure the security of our and our customers' networks, as well as the ongoing integrity of the global Internet," the company said.