Following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, McDonald's Corp. announced a temporary shut-down of all 847 of its restaurants in Russia, raising pressure on other global businesses to halt operations in the nation.

The shutdown of McDonald's restaurants will be symbolic in Russia, where the first facility in central Moscow opened in 1990 and became an iconic emblem of flourishing American capitalism as the Soviet Union collapsed.

Despite the shutdown, McDonald's has decided that it will continue to pay salaries to its 62,000 Russian employees. Because of its massive scale and global reach, when the chain takes a stand on an issue or makes a big operational change, it is frequently imitated by other businesses.

Several agencies, notably the New York State Pension Fund, have pressed major global brands such as McDonald's and PepsiCo Inc. to halt operations in Russia.

For those unaware, McDonald's was first opened at Pushkin Square 32 years ago when the Soviet Union collapsed, the new eatery symbolized the softening of Cold War conflicts.

According to Chris Kempczinski, CEO of McDonald’s, it is impossible to comment on the reopening of restaurants in Russia since the firm is facing supply chain disruptions as well as other operational issues.

It is also worth mentioning here that the company owns 84 percent of its 850 Russian sites, while the rest is largely handled by Rosinter Restaurants Holding, a Moscow-based franchisee. McDonald's has more direct access to shutting down operations in Russia because it owns numerous outlets.

On the other hand, many fast-food businesses in Russia, such as KFC and Pizza Hut, Burger King, Papa John's International Inc., Subway, Starbucks Corp., and Domino's Pizza Inc., may find it more difficult to do so. The Russian locations of these companies are nearly entirely controlled by independent operators, who are bound by complicated international franchise agreements.

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https://money.usnews.com/investing/news/articles/2022-03-08/mcdonalds-to-close-restaurants-in-russia