Companies with investments in Russia ― such as General Electric Co. and Boeing Co. ― are growing concerned as the U.S. prepares to impose tougher sanctions over the crisis in Crimea that may spur retribution against corporate interests.

Almost 100 chief executive officers with the Business Roundtable met in Washington Wednesday with Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel. Prior to the meeting, John Engler, the group’s president and former governor of Michigan, said the CEOs are “obviously very concerned about what is happening in Russia.”

“For some companies, it’s a substantial bit of their business,” Engler said in an interview. “They are watching it very intently, trying to understand what will happen and what the next steps will be.” 

After the meeting several attendees praised Hagel. “He was very engaging,” said Mike Gregoire, the CEO of CA Technologies, who said Russia and the ramifications of sanctions came up in the meeting. He declined to give any details because it was off-the-record.

U.S.-based companies are the largest source of foreign investment in Russia, primarily in technology and financial services, according to a 2013 report by Ernst & Young. Business interests in the country have been growing after the nation joined the World Trade Organization in 2012, the analysts said in their report.

General Electric, whose GE Capital Aviation Services unit is the world’s largest aircraft leasing company, has 54 airplanes in Russia and is tracking developments closely.

“Hopefully the industry can weather it out, avoid heavy sanctions,” said Norm Liu, chief executive officer of GECAS, General Electric Co.’s aircraft leasing unit in an interview at an International Society of Transport Aircraft Trading conference in San Diego. “This is a unique situation for all Western businesses.”

If the conflict between President Vladimir Putin and the West is confined to diplomatic circles, he said he’s less concerned. “If it crosses beyond that, it’s a different story,” he said.

For corporations, additional restrictions present two risks: They could inadvertently punish U.S. interests, and the Russians could push back against American companies.

“They are worried about retaliation,” said William Reinsch, president of the National Foreign Trade Council, a Washington-based group that advocates on behalf of companies operating globally. “The Russians have been pretty clear that if we do something to them, they will hit back.”

Reinsch said he’s been getting calls from energy, technology and financial companies concerned about the prospects for their investments in or sales to Russia.

“The Russians have proven themselves very good at doing things that annoy us,” while not harming their economic interests, he said. Because of that, seizure of foreign assets, such as oil-production facilities, is unlikely, he said. (Bloomberg)

Exxon Mobil Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Rex Tillerson on March 5 said the Irving, Texas-based company wouldn’t take sides in the Russia-Ukraine conflict or any other geopolitical disputes.

Russia is Exxon’s largest exploration prospect outside the company’s home country, and Exxon has also sought permission from Ukrainian authorities to drill beneath the Black Sea off the Crimean coast. Dick Keil, an Exxon spokesman, didn’t immediately return a telephone message left at his office. (Bloomberg)