Kremlin TV propagandists joked
that there might still be McDonald’s in Ukraine, but they were all blown up
after the fast-food chain left Russia.
Presenters of the state TV
channel Rossiya 1 laughed, ridiculing Ukrainian children who will grow up
without fathers and homes, calling them a “burnt-out country.”
McDonald’s said last week it
was selling its restaurants in Russia to its local licensee Alexander Govor to
rename them in response to Putin’s brutal intrusion.
Kremlin mouthpieces Yevgeny
Popov (pictured) and Andrey Sidorchik instead decided to strike at Ukraine and
the United States.
But Kremlin mouthpieces
Yevgeny Popov and Andrey Sidorchik instead decided to strike at Ukraine and the
US for sending weapons to Kyiv amid a cost-of-living crisis exacerbated by
Russian aggression.
Popov said, “American children
have nothing to eat.” Sidorchik replied: “And Ukrainian children receive shells
and bombs, which should somehow ensure their future, which is the most interesting
thing. They will have neither fathers nor homes, a scorched country. They won’t
have anything that American kids have. This is what Western countries bring to
the Ukrainian people.” Popov then chimed in, joking, “But they’ll have
McDonald’s.”
But Sidorchik and the other
presenters smirked as he said, “Yes, but he will be burned because of what is
happening.”
Presenters of the state TV
channel Rossiya 1 laughed, ridiculing Ukrainian children who will grow up
without fathers and at home.
Fellow hosts laughed, joking
that all McDonald’s in Ukraine are being destroyed.
McDonald’s closed all of its
850 restaurants in Russia in March, where it says it employs 62,000 people,
including its iconic restaurant on Pushkinskaya Square. He continued to pay his
employees in the country.
But last week, the company
went even further, saying in a statement: “After more than 30 years in the
country, McDonald’s Corporation announced it is withdrawing from the Russian
market and has begun the process of selling its Russian business.”
The company said it will seek
to ensure that the Russian buyer hires its employees and pays them before the
deal closes. He did not identify a potential buyer. McDonald’s said it plans to
begin removing the golden arches and other symbols and signs from its name.
As part of the exit,
McDonald’s expects to register non-cash spending of between $1.2 billion and
$1.4 billion.
McDonald’s Corporation said
Monday it has initiated the process of selling its business in Russia after 30
years of operating its restaurants in the country following Moscow’s invasion
of Ukraine. In the picture: buyers stand in line on January 31, 1990, at the
first McDonald’s in Russia.
“The humanitarian crisis
caused by the war in Ukraine and the accelerated unpredictable operating
environment has led McDonald’s to conclude that it is no longer viable to
continue to own business in Russia,” the statement said.
CEO Chris Kempchinski said the
“loyalty and loyalty to McDonald’s” of employees and hundreds of Russian suppliers
made the decision to leave difficult. “However, we have obligations to our
global community and we must remain true to our values,” Mr. Kempczynski said
in a statement, “and our commitment to our values means
we can no longer keep the arches shining.”
In an attempt to sell its
restaurants, McDonald’s said it plans to begin removing the golden arches and
other company name symbols and signage.
The company said it would
retain its trademarks in Russia.