mbfitzmahan. Bazaar in Lutsk. Lutsk, Ukraine. 1998.
All changed, changed utterly – a terrible beauty has been born. WB Yeats
Ukraine, Russia & McDonald’s
McDonald’s has got all tangled up with the War in Ukraine. Yes, McDonald’s. You know, that ubiquitous fast food diner that serves you a Big Mac, French fries, and a Coke. The same place that you may have had your first date and later taken your kids for a Happy Meal. Who would have thought?
Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, on February 24th, the United States and her allies have imposed onerous economic sanctions on Russia. From banning exports and imports from Russia, to forbidding Russian air travel, and cutting her out of global trade organizations, these are the the strongest economic sanctions ever placed on a large economic power. How effective these sanctions will be in forcing Vladimir Putin to withdraw from Ukraine is yet unknown.
In addition, private companies have stopped or suspended business with Russia. BP Oil, UPS, and FedEx ceased work with Russia two days after the invasion. Other companies were slower to react. Under pressure from investors and consumers, many Western companies did ultimately withdraw their investments and closed their stores in Russia.
This is where McDonald’s comes in. For the first two weeks of the War, Russian customers could still go to one of McDonald’s 850 friendly diners and order a MacKombo or, for a mere 188 rubles buy the Panini Tuscany which came with two grilled beef steaks, fresh sliced tomatoes, Emmental cheese, arugula, raw onions, with basil sauce and herbs.
It took McDonald’s two weeks to respond to the humanitarian disaster happening in Ukraine. Customers and investors were incensed. Social media from Twitter to FaceBook were filled with demands for a McDonald’s boycott.
On March 8th, after operating for 30 years in Russia, McDonald’s finally closed its doors in Russia.
On McDonald’s website, the corporate office, trying to put a human face on their change of heart, and quite honestly trying to ameliorate a P.R. nightmare, wrote, “Our values mean we cannot ignore the needless human suffering unfolding in Ukraine. Years ago, when confronted with his own difficult decision, Fred Turner (the ‘lovable’ McDonald’s CEO who died in 2013) explained his approach quite simply: ‘Do the right thing.’ There are countless examples over the years of McDonald’s Corporation living up to Fred’s simple ideal. Today, is also one of those days.”
Sigh.
Perplexingly, McDonald’s also closed its doors in Ukraine.
Public response to McDonald’s late action has been less than positive.
In fairness, McDonald’s announced that it will continue to pay salaries to its employees in Ukraine and Russia. How long we do not know. In addition they have directed their Ronald McDonald Charities to provide medical and humanitarian aid in Poland. As of this date, 3.2 million refugees have escaped Ukraine. Poland has absorbed 1.1 million. Those numbers are likely to go up.